


Amortentia

by obitosama



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Bottom Hatake Kakashi, But he'll get his redemption arc, Kinda, M/M, Might be slightly OOC, Obito is a lil bit cocky, Ravenclaw!Kakashi, Slytherin!Obito, Smut, Top Uchiha Obito, all of the characters are legal for obvious reasons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:13:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 80,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25067458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obitosama/pseuds/obitosama
Summary: Despite his stuck-up attitude, Kakashi couldn't help but find the Slytherin Chaser attractive, and he wanted to get into his pants as much as he wanted to shove a broomstick down his throat.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Uchiha Obito
Comments: 92
Kudos: 457





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Obito and Kakashi are 19. Rin is younger than Obito and Kakashi so I made her a third-year while the boys are fourth-years lol

“Fuck,” Kakashi cursed as he woke up, feeling a clenching ache in his abdomen and nether regions.

He threw off his silk eiderdown to reveal his faded out pyjama pants and what looked like his wand poking out the front of them. Except, he knew it wasn’t his wand, for the stick was lying innocently on his bedside table. Kakashi groaned, rolling his lethargic body off the bed and flinging the royal blue curtains apart to reveal a moonlit room and four other poster-beds, behind which, his dormmates slept and snored like pigs.

It was the third time that week, and Kakashi was starting to get annoyed at himself. He did not particularly enjoy strolling down the corridors of the castle at midnight, in which his field of vision would be limited to the small ball of light emanating from his wand as he tried to find his way to the nearest bathroom, which never seemed to be at the same bloody place because the freaking castle shifted every night. It hadn’t been that much trouble a week ago, but for some reason, the bathroom in their dormitory was leaking slime from the tap and the door had to be magically sealed shut while the caretaker thought of what to do. Kakashi half-suspected that Chiyo, the old caretaker, did not actually care and was ignoring the complaints from the Ravenclaws out of anger, because a few Ravenclaw second-years had dropped dungbombs in the library a few weeks ago, just so that they could get into the restricted section. Needless to say, it was forty-eight hours of cleaning for the caretaker.

Kakashi slipped his feet into a pair of white, fluffy slippers – he did not particularly want to entertain the thought of wearing socks and shoes just to visit the bathroom. Putting on his dressing gown, he left the dormitory and descended the stairs to the common room. He wrapped his gown tighter around his body – it was winter and there was no fire burning in the fireplace. He supposed the house elves would have extinguished it, thinking nobody in their right fucking minds would loiter around this late at night.

He slipped out of the Ravenclaw common room and onto a dimly-lit balcony. A tall window on his right illuminated the small area in a freakishly eerie glow. Kakashi took out his wand and whispered, “Lumos.” He knew he didn’t need the light now, but he’d need it later on when he’d be trudging along the darker parts of the castle.

He edged down the spiral staircase, his wand pointing at his feet so that he could see the steps. The last thing he wanted was for him to miss a step, trip and fall down four flights of steps and eventually dying. Kakashi supposed he wasn’t as wary of dying as he was of actually surviving and getting found out by the caretaker, who had a short temper and a tolerance for nonsense as non-existent as the Slytherins’ dicks. He reached the second floor; he did vaguely remember seeing a bathroom somewhere here and prayed that he would be able to find it else he’d have to climb all the way up to the Room of Requirement and beg for a quiet place to jack off because Merlin knows he wasn’t going to scour the fucking castle for its severely limited bathrooms.

He turned to his right and frowned. This wasn’t right; the corridor was too dark. Last time, he remembered walking through a long stretch of filtered light on the floor. He hesitated, not knowing what to do. The strain in his pants was becoming too unbearable and he needed release now. He hadn’t yet lost his mind to actually strip down right there and then and jerk himself off, but if his patience was tested any further, he thought he might do just that.

If Kakashi hadn’t been too preoccupied with his thoughts, he would’ve heard the soft sounds of footsteps coming towards him in the distance, but he remained there until it was too late, or rather, until the person rounded a corner and a face appeared before him.

The wizard raised his eyebrows in surprise when he saw Kakashi, and Kakashi’s eyes widened when he saw who it was. It’s that jerk.

Said jerk slipped into a smirk and sauntered over to where Kakashi was standing. Kakashi noticed that he wasn’t illuminating his path with his wand. He guessed the Slytherin would’ve been used to the dark seeing as they lived in a freaking dungeon.

“Well, well, well,” Obito mused. “If it isn’t my favourite Ravenclaw.”

“Fuck off, Uchiha,” hissed Kakashi.

“Ouch, Hatake.” Obito placed a hand over his chest and stumbled backwards in mock hurt. “That stung more than a Stinging Hex.”

Kakashi simply glared at the boy, fuming and also, rather curious as to what he was doing out so late.

“What are you doing wandering around the castle at night?” he interrogated.

Obito snorted, “I could ask you the same question. Doesn’t seem like a Ravenclaw to be breaking the rules.”

Kakashi merely glowered, though most of his lack of response was accounted for by the ever-growing frustration of not being able to relieve himself. He shifted slightly, trying to adjust his boner. The movement did not go unnoticed by Obito, whose sharp eyes darted downwards. An amused smile played on his lips.

“Ah… naughty boy having naughty dreams and going off to do some naughty things?” He wriggled his eyebrows.

Kakashi wrapped his dressing gown tighter around his front and wished he could stun the boy in front of him to oblivion, though that would have to wait as he had far more pressing issues at that moment.

“Just tell me where the nearest lavatory is,” he scowled.

The smirk on Obito’s face grew even broader. “What? You’re taking care of that alone? Aw man, that’s sad.” He paused, leant closer to Kakashi and whispered, “Why don’t you let me help you?”

Kakashi took a step back, gritting his teeth. “Just tell me where the fucking lavatory is, Obito, or I swear I will hex you with the nastiest spell I can think of.”

Obito merely chuckled. “Ooh, feisty. You’ll be a fun one in bed.” He winked at Kakashi, whose right eye twitched in irritation. Obito jerked a lazy thumb over his shoulder, gesturing towards the direction he had come from. “Round the corner, down the corridor and turn right when you reach the end.”

Kakashi pushed past him and hurried off.

“You’re welcome,” Obito called after him. “And have fun jerking off to Moaning Myrtle’s nudes.”

A cacophonic guffaw followed Kakashi as he rounded the corner. He was pissed at Uchiha Obito, and he hoped he’d given him the right directions, else Kakashi swore he’d hex him so bad, he wouldn’t be able to get on a broom for a month.

Turns out, Obito had given him the right directions and Kakashi almost sighed in relief as he locked himself inside a cubicle and pulled down his pants. He sat on the toilet, the cold stone freezing his butt off, but he didn’t care; right then, he only had one thought in mind. Kakashi hissed as he grabbed his hard member, throwing his head back and closing his eyes. He started breathing in long, hard breaths as his fingers stroked his dick slowly. He swallowed, licking his lips as he thought of his dreams – those which had given him a boner in the first place, waking him up. It was embarrassing, to say the least, that he was jerking off to the thought of the worst dickhead he’d come across in Hogwarts. He felt ashamed and very angry with himself, for this was not supposed to happen, but he couldn’t stop himself from being extremely aroused by Uchiha Obito, even though the garbage spewing out of his mouth struck his nerves most—no, all the time.

Kakashi had always found the Slytherin extremely attractive despite the scars he had on the right half of his face — how he had gotten them was a mystery to everyone in Hogwarts. If anything, the scars only made him even hotter. But the dispute between them started when Obito was fooling around with his cult of Slytherin admirers and was tormenting a poor first-year muggle-born in their third year. Kakashi had interfered, with the pretence that the ruckus was disturbing his studying, so he asked if they could kindly leave before he bewitched the Giant Squid to swallow them whole. Obito had stared at him for a long while, as though he had never seen anything like Kakashi before, and Kakashi was just beginning to wonder if someone had cast a spell on him without him knowing, causing him to sprout an extra arm on his head or something, when Obito threw his head back and roared with laughter. His cronies laughed uncertainly along with him, casting wide-eyed, confused glances in his direction, probably wondering if their leader had gone mental.

After he had calmed down, Obito looked Kakashi up and down before commenting, “Rather brash for a pretty-face like you.”

And so, the torment began. Perhaps it was because Kakashi saw more of him, now that Obito went out of his way to harass Kakashi, or because he had a sick fetish for insults hurled at him, Kakashi didn’t know, but he did know that Obito’s stuck-up attitude made him helplessly ten times more attractive. And Kakashi knew he was fucked (not quite literally) when he woke up one day with an aching dick and a mind filled with replays of vulgar images of Obito. Kakashi hated the boy, and thus, he really didn’t know what to do in situations like these. Therefore, he resorted to angrily jerking himself off, imagining Obito thrusting his huge dick inside of him, knowing that he probably shouldn’t be so fucking turned on by the thought of Obito naked, his rough touches on Kakashi’s skin and the oh-so-motherfucking-sexy jizz face he would have.

“Fuck you, Obito,” Kakashi cursed sincerely as his teeth bit into his lip harder with every hurried stroke he made on his dick. “Go to hell.”

But the image of Obito’s naked body sprawled out, his deliciously toned and tanned body, complete with a massive package standing upright on his stomach, oozing with thick white pearly streams of cum and that infamous smirk on his face brought Kakashi on a crashing high as he flung his head back against the rocky wall, his palm squeezing out every drop of semen out of his body as he jerked his hips back and forth, riding out his orgasm.

“Fu-ck. Obi-Obito!” he exclaimed as he felt the pleasure rip through his entire body.

Kakashi breathed heavily, taking a while to get back his bearings.

“Shit,” he panted.

Because, he knew that he was very attracted to the Slytherin, and he wanted to get into his pants as much as he wanted to shove a broomstick down his throat.

_“Tergeo.”_

He pointed his wand at the small puddles of glistening, white liquid on the floor of the toilet and tried to siphon them away with trembling hands and half-lidded eyes. Once he was sure he’d gotten rid of every trace of his man-liquid, he put his pants back on and left the bathroom stall. Kakashi froze as soon as he stepped out, for Obito was leaning against the sink and was staring at him intensely. Kakashi remained silent, too shocked to say anything. Obito stood and approached him slowly. Kakashi gulped as he stopped right in front of him, eyes dark and unwavering.

“What do you want?” Kakashi tried to come off sounding nonchalant, and winced when his voice cracked as a result of his recent self-pleasuring session.

Obito cocked his head to the side, his lips pursed. “I heard my name.”

“I was cursing you.”

“Didn’t sound like you were cursing me.” Obito took a step forward. “Sounded like you were begging me to stick my dick inside your ass.”

Kakashi glared at the dark-haired, dark-eyed man. He loathed him to the core, and he loathed himself for finding him so insanely handsome.

“Piss off.” Kakashi shoved Obito, hard. The Slytherin stumbled back a couple of steps and Kakashi made his escape right then. He could hear the other’s delirious laughter as he strode out of the bathroom, no doubt cheeks red and eyes brimming with angry tears.

He heard a cubicle door open and close, and wondered vaguely if Obito was trying to see if he’d left traces of him behind. He brisk-walked all the way back to the Ravenclaw common room, not even bothering to light his way up as he was so furious he didn’t care if he got lost and ended up in the Great Lake and got eaten up by the Giant Squid. Fortunately, that didn’t happen and he found himself faced with a tall door with a bronze eagle knocker. He took a deep breath, calming himself down. It would do him no justice to get the riddle wrong with his hot-headed nature and then get stuck outside for the rest of the night. He knocked the door with the knocker once, hoping that none of the Ravenclaws was awake.

“It can be cracked, It can be made,

It can be told, it can be played.

What is it?”

A quiet voice wafted around him. Kakashi frowned. Usually, it would take him only seconds to figure this out, but all he could think of right then was Obito’s mocking face and it made him see nothing but red. He urged the eagle knocker to repeat the riddle and when he couldn’t make head nor tail out of it, he demanded furiously, “Just tell me the bloody answer! I’ve been standing here for fifteen minutes already, for fuck’s sake. I can’t stay here all night!”

“You will not enter the Ravenclaw common room until you give the correct answer,” the eagle spoke in a wispy, unfazed voice.

Kakashi stared unbelievingly at the bronze knocker. He was completely aware of the rules, but he was tired and angry, and he really needed to sleep right then because his mind wasn’t thinking clearly, so he felt completely unjustified.

“Is this a joke?!” he exclaimed, wringing his hands agitatedly.

He was about to fire a string of curses at the bloody intelligent Ravenclaw founder for getting the worst kind of security for his house’s common room, when, to his surprise, the door to the Ravenclaw common room swung open. He blinked, staring at the opening and thought back at what he had just said.

“Ah,” he muttered. “The answer is ‘joke’.”

Eager to enter the warmth, he sped up the flight of stairs and entered his dormitory. Kakashi snuck into his bed and pulled his warm eiderdown over his head. He tried to force himself to sleep, anger and humiliation still boiling in his blood. Eventually, he slowly drifted off to sleep, and as he did so, he subconsciously wondered what Obito was thinking as he heard Kakashi jerking off to his name. Probably further inflated his oversized ego, he thought groggily as the last traces of consciousness slipped away. He did not have inappropriate dreams about Obito anymore that night.

***

Kakashi woke up the next day with a sniffling nose and cold feet. He looked down, annoyed when he saw that his covers were twisted around his body and that his feet were exposed to the cold air. He supposed he must have been tossing and turning all night while he was asleep. Already nursing a bad headache, he dressed himself in his school robes and went down to the Great Hall.

The castle appeared to be much smaller in daylight, for the corridors did not seem as long, nor did the flights of stairs seem as high. He squeezed himself in between a few Ravenclaws and sat down opposite his childhood friend, Nohara Rin. He took a piece of toast and stuffed it in his mouth, moaning when the warm slice eased down his throat.

“You have got to stop making weird noises when you eat.”

Kakashi opened his eyes to see Rin looking at him in disgust. “I’m just eating,” he retorted. “You’re the one who’s turning everything dirty in your mind.”

Rin took some eggs and stuffed them into her mouth.

“You look half dead,” she remarked. “What happened?”

Kakashi sighed and propped his elbow on the table, leaning his head on his hand.

“I met Uchiha Obito last night,” he answered.

“What?” Rin’s eyes widened. “He came into the Ravenclaw common room?”

“No, no,” clarified Kakashi. “I met him while I was looking for a toilet.”

“Why didn’t you use the one in your dorm?” asked Rin with a frown.

“It’s out of order,” Kakashi sighed. “Been so for a week. You’d think they’d have fixed it by now because all it takes is a simple spell—”

“Okay, forget the bathroom.” Rin waved a hand impatiently. “What was he doing up in the middle of the night?”

Kakashi sighed again and reached for a piece of sausage. “I don’t know. But he did confront me as usual.”

“I don’t get it,” Rin frowned. “Why is he picking on you all the time. Aren’t there enough first-years to torment for the whole year?”

“Beats me,” muttered Kakashi. He’d put his sausage back down, its phallic shape reminding him of the reason why he’d gotten up in the middle of the night and why he’d even bumped into Obito in the first place.

As though to add insult to injury, a loud, boisterous chatter emerged from the entrance of the Great Hall. Kakashi didn’t need to turn his head to see who it was, but he still did so, anyway. He watched as Obito and his massive group of friends strolled in. Obito seemed to be looking for something in his direction and when his eyes caught Kakashi’s, he smirked and winked. Flushing, Kakashi turned back to his breakfast.

Kakashi looked up at Rin, hoping she hadn’t seen the exchange, but Rin had turned her head towards the opposite direction, eyeing the Gryffindor table with a look that Kakashi often saw on her face as she watched a particular someone.

“You should go up to him and ask him out if you like him so much,” muttered Kakashi, who was growing tired of Rin’s constant swoons whenever the Gryffindor Quidditch captain was around.

“Are you kidding?” hissed Rin, her eyes still fixed on the handsome man. “He should be the one making the move. That’s what a gentleman does.”

Kakashi snorted and teased, “In this day and age?”

“Quiet, Kakashi.” Rin suddenly turned back to him and exclaimed, “Oh no, he’s looking at me. What do I do?”

“Kok ku ‘im,” Kakashi said in between mouthfuls.

“What?”

Kakashi swallowed. “Talk to him. Go. You’ll never get him to notice you if you’re always hiding from him.”

“But,” said Rin in an obviously torn voice. “What if he doesn’t like me?”

“You’ll never know until you’ve tried, eh?” said Kakashi. “And besides, I’m pretty sure he knows you by name at least. You’re both Quidditch players.”

“Yes, but he’s a Gryffindor player. And not even just a player, he’s the Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team,” moaned Rin.

Kakashi sighed and continued eating his meal in silence. The Gryffindor Quidditch team was the strongest team in Hogwarts, followed closely by the Slytherin team. Kakashi’s mind flitted briefly to Obito as he remembered that he was Chaser for the Slytherin team. Shaking his thoughts out of his head, he grabbed his bag once he was done with his meal, and followed Rin out of the Great Hall. They split ways immediately after, for Rin was a third-year, and Kakashi, a fourth-year, and thus, they didn’t have classes together.

Kakashi looked at his timetable, groaning when he realised that he had double Transfiguration with the Slytherins. Sighing, he managed to drag himself all the way to the Transfiguration classroom, where he waited for Professor Ibiki to arrive. He waited in line outside the classroom, chatting with Ebisu, his dorm-mate, and the only friend he really had in the same year. After a few exchanges, Ebisu went over to his clique and Kakashi was left alone.

“Lonely?” a voice whispered in his ear.

He jumped and whirled around, scowling when he saw Obito doubled over in laughter.

Obito smirked. “You should’ve seen the look on your face. It was hilarious.”

Kakashi ignored him and focused his attention in front of him.

“You clean up pretty well, I must say,” Obito continued. “I wanted to look at some traces of you while I did it myself. But in the end, I told myself a recent memory of your moans would suffice.”

Kakashi turned to Obito, frowning. He was about to ask the Slytherin what he meant when Professor Ibiki arrived, his face stern as he demanded silence. The door to the classroom opened and they filed in. Kakashi went to his usual seat, which was in the second row, near the window. To his great distaste, Obito followed him, casually flinging his bag onto the seat next to his.

“What do you want?” he spat as the other boy sat down.

Obito quirked an eyebrow and drawled, “What? Do I have to have a purpose for sitting wherever I want? There aren’t any fixed seating rules.”

Letting out a huff of frustration, Kakashi decided to ignore him and turned his attention instead, to their Transfiguration professor.

“I have taught you the theory behind transforming spells in the previous lesson. Today, we will practise one of the spells, and that is the Switching Spell. You will partner up and I will give each pair an object. One of you will attempt to switch it to something different, and the other will then switch it back into its original state,” spoke Professor Ibiki in a wispy voice.

Obito leant towards Kakashi and Kakashi could feel his breath against his ear as he spoke, “Wanna pair up?”

Kakashi knew Obito was doing that purposely to get a reaction out of him.

“No,” he replied.

“Come on,” Obito persisted. “We both know you’ll be left out. And then you’ll have no choice but to be paired with me.”

Kakashi closed his eyes and breathed slowly to try and calm himself down. It frustrated him that the other was right. Believing he had no other choice, he eventually agreed. Professor Ibiki weaved in between the students and placed objects in front of them. Kakashi stared at the apple that was placed before him and raised his wand.

“What were you thinking of when you were jerking off?”

Kakashi paused. His grip on his wand had gone shaky.

“Was I naked? Bet I looked good.”

Kakashi tried to focus, his anger rising to dangerously high-levels.

“But you know something?” The annoying smirk was back on Obito’s face, the boy obviously enjoying the effect his teasing had on Kakashi. “I bet I’m much bigger than you thought.”

Kakashi muttered the incantation and immediately, the leaves on the stalk of the apple transformed into two small, white feathers.

Professor Ibiki stopped as he was walking past the duo, looking down at the transformed apple. Expression unwavering, he stalked on, announcing, “Ten points to Ravenclaw.”

Kakashi smiled, pleased with himself.

“You look prettier when you smile. You should do that more often,” Obito snickered.

The smiled slipped off his face as Kakashi looked up to glare at the mocking Slytherin. His eyes still trained on Kakashi’s face, Obito pointed his wand at the apple and it transformed back to its original state. Kakashi was surprised – he thought Obito wasn’t good at his subjects, but it appeared that the Slytherin wasn’t too bad after all.

“Surprised?” Obito winked at Kakashi. “I’m quite good with my stick, you know?” The innuendo did not go unmissed and once the bell rang, signalling for the end of class, Kakashi pelted out of the classroom and headed for the place where he was sure Obito wouldn’t go even if there were a dozen Veela in it: the library.

He took his textbooks out of his bag, sighing as he recalled the way Obito had managed to make him flustered. He opened his Potions textbook, attempting to read up on poison antidotes, for he was sure Professor Namikaze was going to start on it in their next lesson. He quickly became engrossed in his readings, digesting all the information that was presented in the text in front of him. He hadn’t noticed a figure hovering right in front of him and only looked up when the chair was scraped back noisily and the boy with dark brown hair sat down in front of him.

Kakashi looked curiously at the newcomer, taking in the fact that the boy’s face was tinted heavily with a pinkish hue.

“Er… hi,” the boy said.

“Hi,” returned Kakashi.

“Sorry if I’m disturbing you, but I’ve been wanting to ask you…” the boy trailed off, as though unsure of himself.

Kakashi frowned slightly. Now that he looked closer, the boy looked vaguely familiar. It soon dawned upon him that he was the same Ravenclaw who’d been loitering around in the library whenever Kakashi was there. Sometimes, when it got too late at night, other library-goers would leave, leaving only the two of them to study under candlelight.

“Do you, perhaps, know when the Quidditch tryouts are?” the boy asked shyly.

“Oh,” answered Kakashi. “Yes, I do. They’ll be held tomorrow at 6 p.m.”

“Oh, okay,” said the boy awkwardly.

He didn’t move from his seat, and Kakashi reckoned he wasn’t there just to ask when the Quidditch tryouts would be.

“What’s your name?” he asked, attempting to start a conversation.

“Tenzo,” said the boy, looking a little pleased that he had asked him.

“Nice to meet you, Tenzo,” Kakashi smiled. “I’m Kakashi.”

Tenzo simply nodded. Kakashi supposed he must be a shy one.

“So, are you thinking of joining the team?” he probed.

“Oh, yeah.” Tenzo turned a brighter shade of red and Kakashi wondered what it was that the young wizard was so shy about. “I’m going to try out for Seeker. You know, since the previous one has graduated.”

“Oh, cool,” said Kakashi as he took in the boy’s frame, thinking that his stature didn’t really match the small and speedy stereotype of a Seeker. “Do you play well?”

“I’m not bad,” replied the boy.

“Well, we’ll see for ourselves tomorrow, shall we?” grinned Kakashi.

“Are you… going to be there?” Tenzo asked a little apprehensively.

“Of course. The whole team’s going to be there.”

“That’s nerve-wrecking,” Tenzo shuddered.

Kakashi chuckled and decided that he might like this boy. “Which year are you?”

“I’m a third-year,” responded Tenzo.

They chatted afterwards, Kakashi thinking that he’d quite like to have Tenzo as a friend, for once the younger boy had opened up to him, he found that Tenzo was actually quite funny and had a quirky sense of humour. They talked about Quidditch, bitched about their Professors and wondered who would ask out who among the popular kids.

“You know Uchiha Obito?” Tenzo asked suddenly.

Kakashi tensed a little when he heard the name. “Yeah, why?”

“I think he fancies this other Slytherin girl. She’s really pretty and although she’s a little bit older than him, I think they’d make a good match.”

Kakashi’s insides clenched. “Who is she?” he asked offhandedly.

“Mitarashi Anko. She’s like, the hottest girl in Hogwarts.”

Kakashi had heard of Anko, and he’d seen her around. In fact, it was hard to miss her, because like Tenzo said, she was the hottest witch around.

“Is he close to her?”

“Who? Obito? He’s the only guy she really talks to. Thinks she’s too high and mighty for the rest.”

Kakashi mused on this for a while. He did not quite like the uncomfortable stirring in the pit of his stomach.

“Anyway, I’m heading to the Great Hall. It’s almost lunchtime. Want to go together?” Tenzo smiled as he got up from his seat.

“Sure,” Kakashi said as he stuffed his books into his bag. He supposed he could get down to some solid studying in his dormitory afterwards. The library in their common room was always packed.

They headed out of the library, chatting amiably. Tenzo seemed to be really interested in all that Kakashi had to say, for he kept laughing and smiling throughout their conversation. They walked down the corridor that would lead them to the Great Hall and were soon accompanied by a small crowd making its way idly to the Great Hall. Just as Kakashi was about to pass through the entrance, he heard a loud rip and the contents of his bag tumbled out. He looked down in horror as a few people laughed and side-stepped his scattered books. He crouched down to pick them up and Tenzo immediately mirrored his action to help him. Kakashi saw the hem of someone’s black robes and looked up; Obito was standing over him with a mocking smile plastered on his face.

“What was that for?” Kakashi’s voice trembled with anger.

“I was bored,” Obito drawled.

“Bored?” seethed Kakashi, gripping his wand as he got up, before pointing it at him.

Obito seemed unfazed by Kakashi’s action, though Kakashi noticed that his eyes narrowed slightly when Tenzo placed a hand on Kakashi’s arm, and said softly, “Forget it. It’s not worth it.”

“I see you’ve made a new friend,” said Obito, cold eyes on Tenzo.

Tenzo avoided his gaze and continued to try and pull Kakashi’s arm back, which was still outstretched in front of him, wand pointed at Obito’s cocky face. Obito’s gaze dropped to Tenzo’s hand on Kakashi’s arm and spoke, “Must be sad to be you. Having no friends to the point where you have to hang out with third-years.”

“Forget it,” hissed Tenzo desperately as Kakashi’s grip became tighter and his hand shook.

“Did you perhaps bribe your friend—what was her name again? Ah yes, Nohara Rin. What’s she doing with a loser like you?”

Kakashi gritted his teeth and fired a Bat-Bogey Hex at Obito, who ducked. The spell rebounded off a tapestry and hit a first-year. The girl shrieked as black bats emerged from her nostrils and flapped around her head.

“Hatake Kakashi!” a voice boomed and Kakashi’s heart stopped.

Professor Uchiha Fugaku, his Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and also the teacher whom Kakashi hated to the core, appeared, his tall stature prominent among the students.

“I’ve never come across a Ravenclaw so inherently dumb. Do you not understand the rule ‘No magic in the corridors’?” Professor Uchiha stared coldly down at him. But Kakashi wasn’t paying attention; he was glaring at Obito, who was smirking triumphantly back at him. “Twenty points from Ravenclaw. Though, I don’t think that will suffice. See me tomorrow at 6 p.m. to serve detention.”

Kakashi whipped his head back to Professor Uchiha, his face incredulous. “But sir, there are Quidditch tryouts,” he argued.

“And you’re already on the team,” Professor Uchiha replied. “I see no reason for you to be present. Tomorrow, six o’ clock, in my office. Don’t be late.”

Professor Uchiha stalked off, leaving behind a dumbfounded Kakashi. Obito came up to him, barely repressing a smile. “Aw, poor Kakashi has to go for detention. Bet your captain won’t be happy with this.”

_Fucking Uchihas._

Noticing a very despondent-looking Kakashi, Tenzo wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure the team can manage,” he consoled.

“Hey kid,” said Obito suddenly, his tone annoyed. “Why don’t you hang out with people your own age?”

“What’s it to you?” Tenzo snapped back. “I can hang out with whoever I want.”

Kakashi left them bickering at the entrance and entered the Great Hall, catching sight of Rin waving enthusiastically and going over to her. Miserably, he wondered how he was going to break the news to his Captain later. He was terribly angry at Obito, for this was all his fault, and if he wasn’t so fucking attracted to him, he’d already be shipped off to Azkaban for committing murder.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite his stuck-up attitude, Kakashi couldn't help but find the Slytherin's Chaser attractive, and he wanted to get into his pants as much as he wanted to shove a broomstick down his throat.

“Seriously? You couldn’t keep your wand in your pocket and just had to fire a spell at him?” said an incredulous Konan.

It was rare to see the Ravenclaw Captain having such an uncharacteristic outburst, for she was usually cold and serious. She was one of the school’s top scorers and was dubbed the Ice Queen for her extremely quiet nature and her inability to crack a smile even when someone played the best Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes prank on Professor Uchiha. Despite her cold demise, however, she was actually gentle-hearted and sensible, and thus, when she raised her voice like she did with Kakashi, it had to be because she was extremely pissed.

“My goodness, Kakashi, you can’t keep getting yourself into trouble and missing practice. You do understand that our first match is in a few weeks’ time, don’t you?”

Kakashi thought her accusation was totally unfair, for he wasn’t always getting himself into trouble – this was a very rare occasion. But he thought rebutting her wouldn’t make his situation any better, so he bit his tongue and remained silent.

“I expect one-hundred percent commitment from now on, Kakashi. Let him curse you or whatever, just make sure you turn up for practice. Is that understood?” She glared at him.

“Yes,” he mumbled.

The sixth-year walked away, swinging her shoulder-length purple hair.

Kakashi closed his eyes and sighed; at least the worst was over. He made his way back to the table where he was studying with Rin.

The third-year looked up and took in Kakashi’s sullen expression. “Tough luck. Quidditch is her life. You can’t really blame her,” she said sympathetically, twirling her quill skilfully around his fingers. When she saw Kakashi’s drooping eyes and the prominent slump of his shoulders, she added in concern, “If you’re feeling tired, why don’t you head up to your dorm and rest your eyes for a bit? Your next class is in an hour and a half, right?”

Kakashi nodded. “But I really need to read up on this,” he sighed, gesturing at his Potions book, which was lying open. He’d halted his studying when Tenzo came up to talk to him that morning, and thus, hadn’t gone past the first page of poison antidotes.

“Your health’s more important,” Rin said firmly. “Go, take a rest. I’m sure you won’t fail just because you didn’t read up beforehand.” 

“Do you have any classes after this break?”

“Yes,” Rin goraned. “And it’s History of Magic.” 

“Good luck.” Kakashi gave her a weary smile as he packed his things.

“Thanks,” muttered Rin. “Good luck with your Potions too.”

Kakashi scowled. He wasn’t sure he was looking forward to seeing Obito.

He trudged up the winding stairs, leaving Rin to complete her History of Magic assignment. He entered his dormitory. His headache had worsened significantly throughout the day, such that it was now a dull, throbbing pain behind his eyeballs. He was also extremely exhausted and sleep-deprived. He made a mental note to himself to bring the bathroom situation up to his Head of House as soon as he had the chance, so that they could fix the goddamn toilet as soon as possible.

Kakashi unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt and loosened his tie before slipping into his bed. He closed his eyes, thinking that he could probably squeeze in an extra hour of studying when he woke up.

_Obito was in his dormitory; he’d climbed onto Kakashi’s bed and was shoving a bezoar down his throat, crying, “If you won’t have my dick, I’ll make you suck on this!”_

_Professor Uchiha burst into the room a moment later, carrying Kakashi’s Nimbus Two-Thousand and Two, and declared, “Use this! So that he can’t fly anymore!”_

_The scene shifted to Kakashi watching enviously from the stands as his teammates played against Slytherin. They were faring poorly, for one of their Chasers was missing and hence, lost the game six-hundred to zero. Konan flew over to him on her broomstick and angrily said, “This is all your fault, Kakashi! If you had agreed to go out with Obito, this wouldn’t have happened!”_

_Kakashi gave a yelp when he started rising up in the air._

_“He’s flying! How is he flying?”_

_“It’s the broomstick he ate!”_

_Shouts were heard below him as he rose higher and higher in the air and a crowd began to form underneath him. Some wore concerned expressions, while others laughed at him. Kakashi found Obito’s face among the crowd, a contemptuous look on his face as he laughed at Kakashi’s predicament. The laughter got louder and louder and there was a certain ringing in Kakashi’s ears. Soon, the ringing drowned out the laughter and was all that he could hear._

Kakashi groaned and opened his eyes. There was an annoyingly loud ringing in his ears and he sat up, scratching his head and wondering what in Merlin’s saggy underwear was the ringing sound that was bellowing through his head. He glanced around him, registering the fact that he was in his dormitory and not out on the Quidditch pitch, flying up into the clouds. With a jolt, he realised that the ringing was in fact, the school bell signalling for the start of class and he was late.

Shit.

Kakashi grabbed his bag and scurried out of the dormitory and the common room. He rushed down the Ravenclaw Tower, leaping down two steps at a time. The Potions lab was in the dungeons, and he knew he’d never make it there in time. Still, he sprinted all the way down to the dark, musky underground, hearing his pants echoing off the stone walls and his feet producing loud, staccato-like sounds.

The Potions lab – there it is.

He burst through the door, his chest heaving, his tie askew and his robes about to fall off one shoulder. Everyone stared at him and his Potions Master narrowed his eyes.

“You’re late, Mr. Hatake,” Professor Namikaze Minato, the Head of Ravenclaw House, said in a cold voice.

“I’m sorry, sir,” Kakashi apologised in between gasps. “I overslept.”

“Yes, it’s always the same excuse from the students,” Professor Namikaze didn’t look pleased. “I will let you off this time as it is your first offence, but do take note that if you are late for my class again, you will be scrubbing clean all the equipment that your classmates have used, without magic.”

Kakashi gulped and apologised again before turning to find a seat. He groaned when he saw that the only seat available was the one next to Obito. The latter smiled evilly. Kakashi went over and plopped his things down. He could feel the other’s stare on him, but he did not acknowledge, nor look at him. He sat down.

“As I was saying, you will be concocting a simple poison antidote today. This antidote can cure you of the effects of most tame poisons. The steps are very simple and hence, I will not guide you along the process. I will be assessing your antidotes at the end of the day and…”

“You know, you look terribly sexy like that.”

Kakashi turned to his left to see Obito looking down at his messy uniform. He tugged his robes back into place. Being resolutely aware that Obito’s gaze was lingering on the pale flesh that was exposed, revealing his collarbones, he buttoned his shirt back up and combed his messy silver hair with his hand.

“Were you really asleep? You look like you just had a good fuck.”

Kakashi glared at the boy and turned back to the front, trying his damnest to pay attention to Professor Namikaze. He didn’t like the way his cheeks had heated up, nor the way he felt a strange tingling in his stomach at Obito’s words.

Obito didn’t say anything else, but he continued to stare at Kakashi in a creepy way, the latter finding it extremely difficult to concentrate on his professor’s words with the way Obito was practically eye-fucking him.

_Bloody hell, why won’t he leave me alone?_

“Now, collect your ingredients and submit a vial of your antidote at the end of class.”

Everyone got out of their seats and Kakashi panicked. He hadn’t heard Professor Namikaze’s instructions entirely and he wasn’t really prepared to make that potion. He heard a light chuckle from beside him and glanced at the Slytherin to find that he was staring amusedly at him.

Getting up from his stool, Obito eyed Kakashi for a while longer before moving towards the back of the lab.

Kakashi sighed and consulted his Potions textbook briefly, memorising all the ingredients before getting up and collecting them from the back of the lab. He returned, arms full of ingredients, and nudged his stool farther away from Obito before sitting back down on it. The action did not go unmissed by Obito.

“Are you avoiding me?” he asked, the corners of his lips twitching.

Ignoring Obito, Kakashi started the fire and set his cauldron over it before adding a bezoar into his mortar and crushing it. He heard the scrape of a stool against the stone floor and looked to his left, annoyed to find that Obito had moved his stool so that he was right beside Kakashi. Obito’s cauldron was boiling at the far left end of the table and his ingredients were spread out across his half. He had brought his mortar over with him, invading Kakashi’s space.

“Get back to your side,” Kakashi spat.

“Why should I? It’s already packed with ingredients and you don’t seem to want to use all of your space,” he mocked.

Kakashi gritted his teeth and grinded his bezoar roughly.

“Didn’t know you were so violent. You must like it rough then.” Obito wriggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Kakashi increased the vigour of his actions, vaguely thinking that he was probably going to reduce the fucking stone into paste at this rate. Another thing to blame Obito for, he thought spitefully.

Once he deemed his powder fine enough, Kakashi carefully measured the right amount, pouring the particles into his cauldron. A light, wispy smoke immediately wafted up from the boiling liquid. Kakashi was just measuring some herbs, adding some of them to the set of scales in front of him. He stood up to allow himself some control over the minute amounts he was adding. Just as his figure was about to reach the correct amount, Kakashi gasped, knocking his scales over and toppling the herbs all over his workbench. He felt blood pulse to his head and he looked back furiously at a neutral-faced Obito, whose hand was placed on Kakashi’s ass, squeezing it lightly. The hand was gone in a flash as Professor Namikaze arrived, face disapproving as he waved his wand, replacing Kakashi’s herbs.

“Careful, Mr. Hatake,” he simply said before he walked away.

Face red and feeling completely embarrassed, Kakashi turned to Obito, hissing, “What the fuck are you doing?”

“Sorry,” snickered the other boy. “I couldn’t help it. Your ass just looked too delicious.”

Kakashi gaped at the boy. To say that Obito’s casual ass-grab hadn’t ignited a furious broiling in his stomach was a lie. He turned back to his table, trying to recall what he was about to do.

Obito stood up, grabbing his own set of scales and herbs, and measured them precisely before adding them into his cauldron. The clear liquid in his cauldron shimmered into a pearly, silver substance.

Kakashi returned to his own measuring, this time, glancing towards Obito every now and then from the corner of his eye to see if the other was going to engage in any other misbehaviour. Fortunately, he didn’t. They worked on their potions in silence, each engrossed in the steps that he had to undertake. Once their potions had reached the halfway stage, in which they each had to leave it for fifteen minutes while it brewed into a light-gold colour, they sat back down.

Kakashi became aware of the fact that once again, Obito was sitting close to him and their thighs were touching.

 _Why can’t he keep his bloody legs together?_ Kakashi thought, sparing a look of wrath at the other’s spread legs. His eyes travelled up the thick thighs and settled on an area, which he was sure he wasn’t supposed to stare at, before he turned away, cheeks flaming up.

Obito hummed to a tune that annoyed Kakashi; everything the Slytherin did seemed to be bothering him to great lengths. He didn’t like the way Obito had pressed his right thigh against his left and although they were both wearing thick school robes, Kakashi’s flesh still heated up at the contact. He glanced around the lab. A thick cloud of smoke was now occupying the top half of the classroom, making it nearly impossible to see more than two tables away. He could see the shadowy figures of his classmates moving about, trying to complete their steps, or otherwise, the stoic grey masses stoning in their seats as their potion took some time to brew.

Kakashi glanced at the clock and frowned. Had it only been two minutes?

All of a sudden, the thigh that was touching him started moving up and down, rubbing against Kakashi’s leg sensually. He bit back a yelp as he turned to glare at Obito, who was staring at him lasciviously.

“Stop it,” hissed Kakashi through his teeth as Obito continued to rub his thigh against Kakashi’s.

Kakashi was starting to get a little uncomfortable in his pants and he scooted as far away from Obito as the table could allow. Obito’s legs were spread wide apart, and he stretched a leg before trailing it up Kakashi’s calf. The Ravenclaw found it extremely difficult to maintain his even breathing. The teasing continued for a while more, until their potions had finished brewing and the bell rang, in which Kakashi hastily got up, scooping the light-gold antidote into a small vial and going over to place it on his professor’s desk. He went back to his bench, trying to pack his things and fumbling under Obito’s scrutiny. When he’d successfully shoved his set of scales into his bag, he raced out of the classroom.

Kakashi went straight to his dormitory. He needed to clear his mind because he had no idea what had just happened. He was very confused, because it looked like the Slytherin had just tried to arouse him. He carried on with his day in this state of utter confusion and bewilderment, much to the annoyance of Rin, who often found herself conversing with a blank-faced, unfocused Kakashi.

***

That night, Kakashi awoke with a strain in his pants and a tired mind that was begging himself not to have any more promiscuous thoughts of the seductive Slytherin. It was bound to happen, for Kakashi had been sure his mind wouldn’t be able to hold off thoughts of Obito rubbing his thigh against his own.

He left the Ravenclaw Tower again, this time, pattering around the castle in hurried steps and hoping nobody was around to hear him because he really needed to get back to sleep. He’d been sleep-deprived the entire week and was sure if he was caught losing focus in class again, he’d be kicked out of Ravenclaw and be sorted into a dumber house.

Kakashi entered the same toilet he went to the previous night, not bothering to lock the door to the cubicle this time, because who in their right fucking mind would be loitering around at this time of the night and truthfully, Kakashi didn’t give a shit anymore if he was found out, as long as he returned to the warm confines of his bed and was able to have some solid Obito-free sleep.

Kakashi pulled his pants down as he sat down and spread his legs apart. He grabbed his semi-hard member and began to think of the way Obito’s fingers had trailed along his thighs in his dreams, igniting a flame inside Kakashi that was more intoxicating than Firewhisky. He tugged on his member, letting lewd moans escape his lips at the sinful images that were bursting through his mind.

“Ahh…” he let out a moan as his pumps became faster.

Kakashi twitched, feeling the pressure piling up in his stomach. He bit down on his bottom lip, his hands making hurried strokes as his desperation for release heightened. He took in sharp, raspy breaths, his exhales interlaced with breathy moans.

“Merlin’s fucking balls,” he swore as the release he so longed for, wouldn’t come.

The tension in his lower parts was building up agonisingly and he was starting to get frustrated. Shrugging his dressing gown off his body, he let it fall into a slump on the ground and leant back, his back pressing against the cold toilet and his legs wide apart in front of him. His right hand was grasping a tall, leaking cock, which veins stood out prominent and blue under the pale moonlight as a result of pressure of the blood pulsing through them. His left hand reached under his shirt and crawled up his chest, grasping a nipple. “A-ah… fuck,” he exclaimed as he played around with his nipple, stimulating the hardened bud.

His right hand was now tugging desperately at his member, which was so hard, Kakashi almost felt a masochistic pain course him with every stroke his rough fingers made over the skin. His dick was coated with his precum, and the clear liquid flowed in trails down his hand. He was so fucking turned on and yet, he couldn’t come.

He brandished wild images of Obito in his mind – his sweaty, slightly tanned skin making wet, vulgar sounds against Kakashi’s thighs as he buried himself deep into the Ravenclaw. Beads of sweat formed on Kakashi’s forehead as he quickened his pace, biting his bottom lip out of agitation. He let out loud, raspy moans periodically, which were sometimes punctuated with Obito’s name.

His precum-coated fingers reached down and slipped into his entrance, one at first and soon followed by another. Kakashi let out a particularly loud and long moan, followed by the most sensual cry of Obito’s name as he imagined the Slytherin ramming hard into him, fucking him senseless. He released his hardened nipple and pumped his cock, straining to get into that delectable clench of his fist.

The door swung open and hit the cubicle’s wall with a bang, startling Kakashi as he whipped his legs closed, his hands already busily finding his discarded garments.

“What the fuck?” Kakashi shrieked as he took in the looming figure standing at the doorway.

Obito’s eyes were trained hungrily on Kakashi, the silver-haired boy shuddering at the burning desire in the dark orbs. Obito stepped into the cubicle, slamming the door shut behind him with another loud bang that caused the Ravenclaw to jump. 

“What are you doing?” demanded Kakashi as Obito took a few steps closer, his gaze trailing down Kakashi’s body and eventually stopping at his crotch, atop of which, Kakashi’s hands desperately clutched his dressing gown.

Obito knelt down in front of Kakashi, whose eyes widened as he pried his hands away, letting the piece of cloth once again, fall limply to the ground. He eyed the hard, weeping member, and it twitched. Obito wrapped his hand around it and Kakashi let out a soft whimper as his skin reacted to the touch with pleasurable sensations. Obito raised a dark gaze up to Kakashi’s face. 

_Fuck, he looks so fucking hot._

The heat that was burning in his nether regions was unbearable and once Obito licked a long, wet stripe up his thick cock, Kakashi threw his head back, unable to take the overwhelming sensation.

“Mmph…” He suppressed a moan, because somewhere within his wrecked mind, he knew that this was wrong and that Obito wasn’t supposed to make him feel this fucking good regardless of how many pervasive thoughts about the Slytherin penetrated his mind. But all logic and sense were wiped out of his mind when Obito wrapped his lips around Kakashi’s head.

“Aaahhh…” he let out a drawn-out moan, his toes curling when Obito’s tongue flicked at his tip.

It felt so fucking good, and Kakashi could barely control himself when Obito swallowed him at an excruciatingly slow pace, the walls of his mouth and his tongue creating the much-needed friction for Kakashi’s aggravated cock. He placed a hand uncertainly at the back of Obito’s head, and when the Slytherin did not say anything, he gently pushed Obito in, hissing as he slid deeper into his mouth and letting out a throaty moan when he hit the back of his throat.

Obito slid his member out, such that only Kakashi’s head was in his mouth and he sucked harshly.

“Oh fuck, Obito,” Kakashi hissed as Obito released his member and spread his legs wider. He was about to protest when he caught the sight of Obito eyeing his entrance which was still wet and pink from his ministrations earlier. “Obi— _Ah_!” He gasped out a moan when the Slytherin suddenly leant down and his tongue darted out along the cleft. It set all of his body ablaze. He brought a hand to his mouth to muffle his moans as Obito started sucking on the puckered rim of muscles, the tip of his tongue prodding into the opening while he smeared his spit all over it. He almost _whined_ when Obito drew back, but the boy’s mouth immediately swallowed his member once again and a finger slipped into his hole, skillfuly brushing a bundle of nerves that made his eyes roll back.

The sucking and prodding continued, each time with increased speed and rigour. Kakashi started rolling his hips forth, pressing Obito’s face into his crotch and trying to get as deep as he could into the warm, wet cavern. Obito’s deep voice rumbled, sending a series of vibrations up Kakashi’s length and the boy found himself grasping desperately at the wall of the cubicle as he gently bucked his hips to get Obito’s finger to move faster.

Obito had placed a hand on Kakashi’s inner thigh, squeezing it sensually and in time with the increased speed of Kakashi’s shallow thrusts. When Obito hollowed his cheeks, the walls of his mouth clenching tightly around Kakashi’s cock and the tip of his finger incessantly massaging his prostate, Kakashi gave one deep thrust down Obito’s throat and with a loud, raspy cry, came into Obito’s mouth.

The older boy gagged, but quickly recovered as he slipped Kakashi’s dick out of his mouth, swiftly placing a hand around the exposed shaft as his lips remained wrapped around the tip, and he sucked him dry.

Kakashi panted heavily, the sweat sticking his fringe to his forehead, and he stared down at the black-haired boy. The pleasure that coursed through his every vein was the greatest he’d ever felt, and his nerves were still aching with the sensation. He felt himself shuddering weakly, an effect of the climax he’d just reached.

He stared as Obito licked up every trace of cum off his now limp member. The Slytherin looked up, a kind of wildness in his eyes. They stared at each other for a long time, Kakashi just trying to grasp at the fact that Uchiha Obito had just given him a fucking blowjob and fingered him. 

“Want to return the favour?” Obito broke the silence with his hoarse voice as he pulled his wet finger out of him. 

Kakashi looked down at the Slytherin’s pants and noticed a very prominent and very large bulge protruding out the front of them. He returned his gaze to Obito’s eyes, which were still trained on him, impatient and lustful.

Kakashi didn’t know what had just happened; he didn’t know what to do, hence, he scrambled up from the toilet, accidentally knocking Obito back in the process and pulled his pants up before hurrying out of the lavatory. He raced back to the Ravenclaw Tower, his mind still in a pure state of shock. He almost didn’t believe that what had just happened was real, but his legs were still very weak, his heart was still pounding, and his face was still hot from the flush of his recent high. He reached the entrance to the common room and doubled over, beat from his hurry to get there. He knocked on the door with the bronze knocker.

“What always comes,

But never arrives?”

 _My fucking orgasm_ , Kakashi thought.

“Tomorrow,” he panted and the door swung open.

Kakashi made his way past the library that was attached to the common room – it was always fully packed in the mornings, but now looked serene, being occupied by nothing but books. He walked past the pale statue of Rowena Ravenclaw, placing a hand on the railing of the winding staircase and making his way up to the dormitories. His shoulders slumped, his mind feeling like slush, Kakashi was a mess and once he reached his bed, he crept beneath the covers and squeezed his eyes shut. He tried to keep the vibrant images out of his mind, and tried to drown out the wet, slurping sounds that penetrated his ears.

***

Kakashi woke up thinking of Obito, and he wrapped his eiderdown tighter over his head, wishing he didn’t have to come out for the weight of humiliation and embarrassment was just starting to press down on him. There was a flurry of movement around him and he knew his dorm-mates were getting themselves ready.

“Is he still asleep?”

“We should wake him up.”

“Don’t. It’ll be fun to see him being late for DADA.”

“Don’t be mean. He’s already gotten into trouble with Fugaku,” the voice belonged to Ebisu. Kakashi could hear him moving towards him and a few moments later, his curtains were flung back. “Dude, wake up, you’re going to be late for class.”

Groaning, Kakashi buried himself deeper into his sheets. He was not quite ready to face the world just yet. A few snickers could be heard from across the room.

“We should levitate him by his ankles.”

“Good idea. Maybe the extra bloodflow will give his brain enough oxygen to think.”

“What was the spell again? Is it Levi—?”

“Alright, alright! I’m getting the fuck up.” Kakashi threw off his eiderdown in annoyance and swung his feet down.

His four other dormmates chuckled.

“Fucking twats,” mumbled Kakashi as he grabbed his pile of clothes.

After changing and getting himself ready, Kakashi left the Ravenclaw Tower with the shitheads he called dormmates. He stalked behind them, scowling at their loud chatter as he thrust his hands into his pockets. He didn’t feel like joining in on their conversation and once they’d reached the Great Hall, he was quite happy to leave them and join Rin at their usual place along the Ravenclaw table.

“Whoa,” said Rin once she’d taken a look at Kakashi’s face. “What happened to you?”

Kakashi did not reply, his mood still depressed. Rin continued to eye him warily, drinking her piping hot soup in small amounts. No doubt the brown-haired girl was curious, as she always was, about what had happened, but she knew Kakashi well enough to understand that the older wanted nothing more than to elude the subject.

They ate their breakfast in silence. Kakashi felt groggy and spaced out due to last night’s incident. He consulted his timetable, half-expecting to share a class with the Slytherins today and his mind was already working out a way to avoid Obito for the entire period, when, to his surprise, he saw that he did not have any classes with the Slytherins that day. He voiced this out to Rin, in perhaps a more surprised tone than he would normally convey this message with.

“Isn’t that a good thing?” asked Rin as she observed Kakashi carefully.

Kakashi shrugged before carrying on with his meal. It wasn’t that he had been slightly looking forward to having classes with the Slytherins, no. He wasn’t anticipating seeing a particular Slytherin at all. Hence, he had no idea why his stomach dropped slightly upon the fact that he probably wouldn’t have any contact with Obito at all that day.

A shy voice disrupted his brooding and he looked up to see that Tenzo had greeted him.

“Morning,” he smiled tiredly

“May I sit here?” Tenzo asked, his gaze flitting over to Rin as though afraid the girl might reject him.

“Sure, of course,” said Kakashi and he shifted aside to make space for the younger wizard. “Rin, this is Tenzo. Tenzo, Rin.” He introduced the two juniors.

Rin stared at him incredulously, “Kakashi, you are aware that we’re both third-year Ravenclaws who’ve been sharing classes nearly every day for the past three year, right?”

Kakashi laughed sheepishly. “Oh, right.”

Rin snorted. “You are getting old. Look at all those grey hairs growing out.”

“I was born with this hair.” He kicked her foot under the table. “And you’re only two months younger than me. If I’m getting old then so are you.”

Rin clicked her tongue. Her eyes flickered to the entrance of the Great Hall and she nudged Kakashi, “Hey. It’s Obito.”

Kakashi told himself firmly not to look, but as usual, his body betrayed him and he found himself casting a side-long glance towards the entrance. He watched as Obito strolled in, strangely without his group of friends. The Slytherin took a different turn this time, and came towards the Ravenclaw table.

“He’s coming,” hissed Rin. Kakashi didn’t need the verbal reminder, for he was already ducking his head and busying himself with his soup.

“Why is he coming over?” wondered Tenzo with a frown. “The Slytherin table is that way.”

They immediately went silent and resumed eating their meals; Kakashi suspected that Obito must be close by. He focused his attention on the creamy texture of his soup, soggy mushrooms half-visible on the surface, and tried his best to ignore the nervous wrench in his stomach. He felt a light whiff of air pass by and turned to his left slightly to see the Slytherin walking away. 

Rin, who was sitting directly in front of Kakashi, trained her eyes on Obito’s back. “He was staring at you,” she said once Obito was out of earshot.

They turned to watch collectively as Obito sauntered over to the Slytherin table and sat down.

“Why did he take the long way to the Slytherin table? And why didn’t he bully you as usual?” she questioned.

Kakashi said nothing. He was shoving soup into his mouth and his poor tongue was now burning from the hot soup.

“Something happened,” the girl concluded, her eyes narrowing at Kakashi. “Something happened between you two. Am I right?”

Again, Kakashi remained mum. Tenzo was peering over his shoulder at the Slytherin table. He shifted uncomfortably, as though something bothered him. He looked upset.

“But why was he staring at you?” Rin continued to muse. “I could see his face clearly – he almost looked apprehensive.”

It was a very uncomfortable few minutes for Kakashi, for Tenzo had turned quiet and Rin continued to mutter to herself about Obito’s strange behaviour. He quickly got up as soon as the bell rang and headed for his Defence Against the Dark Arts class.

Kakashi waited along the Serpentine corridor, outside Classroom 3C. He pondered over what Rin had said. Was Obito really staring at him? Did he take a detour towards the Ravenclaw table just to stare at him as he walked past? And what was that Rin said? He looked apprehensive? Why would he be apprehensive after giving him a fucking blowjob and making him feel so humiliated he couldn’t bear to look at Obito’s face? It was Obito’s fault thoughts about last night kept streaming into Kakashi’s mind, such that Kakashi wasn’t sure how he felt about the Slytherin anymore. He probably walked past the table just to torment Kakashi, because Merlin knew it was working and he was worrying his ass off trying to decipher Obito’s actions.

His classmates soon arrived in large numbers and not too long afterwards, Professor Uchiha arrived as well. The corridor hushed immediately – to say they were intimidated by Professor Uchiha was a huge understatement.

“You may enter,” said Professor Uchiha coldly.

They filed in quietly. Kakashi took his seat next to Ebisu, whose usual playful and talkative nature had subsided. He hated Professor Uchiha as much as Kakashi did.

“We will be looking at counter-spells today. Can anyone name me the six different types of counter-spells?” asked Professor Uchiha.

A hand shot up and he pointed his wand lazily at the student. “Hyuuga Tokuma.”

“Counter-jinxes, counter-curses, counter-charms, untransfigurations and anti-jinxes,” recited the fourth-year from memory.

“Yes, most spells have a counter-spell attached to them, which is to say, they are reversible, though some to a larger extent than others,” said Professor Uchiha. “However, spells that usually involve Dark Magic, to a very large extent, do not have any counter-spells working against them. The Unforgivable Curses are very famous examples of spells that are imbued so heavily with Dark Magic, their usage has been forbidden due to their tragic and irreversible effects.”

His eyes swept the classroom and landed on Kakashi.

“Hatake Kakashi,” he called out, the sudden rise in the volume of his tone startling the boy. “Name me the three Unforgivable Curses.”

“Er…” said Kakashi. He knew this; he’d read up on this so many times because it was such a fascinating topic. However, making eye contact with Professor Uchiha’s stone-cold eyes rendered him unable to recall much in his extremely nervous state. “The Cruciatus Curse, the Imperius Curse… and…”

_Shit, why can’t I recall the third bloody curse? It was something like Avada… Avada… Fuck the long-ass Latin names._

“I’m waiting, Kakashi,” said Professor Uchiha.

“Erm… It’s… Er…” Kakashi panicked. The spell was on the tip of his tongue.

“Avada Kedavra,” whispered Ebisu.

“Avada Kedavra,” repeated Kakashi, face red. How was he a fucking Ravenclaw with a brain like that?

“Pity,” said Professor Uchiha. “It seems like you haven’t read up on curses, like I have instructed you to. In that case, all of you will be writing a fifteen-inch essay on the curses, their origins and the effects that they have. This essay is to be submitted in the next lesson, which is…” Professor Uchiha smirked. “Tomorrow.”

Kakashi could feel the glares of his classmates boring into his back and he sank into his seat.

“Oh, and Kakashi,” Professor Uchiha added. “Your detention with me is not a valid excuse for your late submission, should you wish to embark on that. I suppose as a Ravenclaw, you are adept at proper time-management.”

Kakashi sighed. He fucking hated Professor Uchiha. They carried on with their lesson in a glum mood.

It was a long day and by the time it was lunchtime, Kakashi was burdened with a fifteen-inch essay that was to be submitted the next day, two hundred pages of Ancient Runes readings, Charms work and two History of Magic essays on fucking Goblins and their wars.

“Wow, you’re not even an O.W.Ls student and you have so much work already,” said Rin as she nibbled on a piece of chicken wing.

Kakashi groaned. “It’s all because of Uchiha. That good-for-nothing asshat.”

“Whoa… did Obito bother you again?”

Kakashi looked up to see Tenzo arrive. He sat down beside him.

“I was talking about Professor Uchiha,” clarified Kakashi. “He gave us a freaking fifteen-inch essay to do for no reason at all!”

“Correction.” Rin pointed her half-eaten wing at Kakashi. “He gave it to you because you couldn’t remember one of the most famous spells out there.”

“What’s that?” asked Tenzo.

“Fucking Avada Kedavra,” replied Kakashi as he dug into his pudding.

Just then, Konan walked up to them. 

“Rin,” she said when she’d come up to them. “Be at the pitch by five-thirty. I want to set up the obstacles for the newbies.”

Rin moaned. “Can’t you let me have my dinner in peace without rushing me to finish it for once?”

“Unfortunately not,” she said. She cast a cold glance at Kakashi before stalking off.

“She’s still not over it, is she?” muttered Kakashi.

“Nah,” answered Rin. “She holds grudges, that one.”

Tenzo had grown silent. It wasn’t until Kakashi asked him what was wrong did Tenzo reply, “Just nervous about the tryouts.”

He gave a light chuckle, which, to Kakashi’s ears, sounded forced. After lunch, they parted ways, and Kakashi headed out of the castle to the school grounds. The cold winter air bit at his exposed skin harshly and he wrapped his cloak tighter around his body, trying to preserve as much body heat as possible. The snow slushed under his feet and he had to take particular care while trudging down a slope, for the ground beneath the white dust covering its surface was more or less frozen. He saw his class and Professor Jiraiya huddling around the pumpkin patch and joined them.

“Alright kids,” said the white-haired professor jovially. “I’ve got a really neat surprise for you. Follow me, please.”

They followed him curiously as he weaved through the pumpkin patch to a shady corner; there appeared to be what looked like forty hedgehogs nibbling on a patch of dried wild daisies.

“Hedgehogs?” Ebisu voiced out.

“Knarls,” Professor Jiraiya corrected. “They look like hedgehogs, but they are distinctly different with regards to their attitude towards food that’s being offered to them. Knarls are extremely sensitive, and hence, when offered food, will misunderstand the intention and savage the giver’s house.”

He picked one up and handed it to a girl, who cooed when the small creature rolled up in her palms.

“The trick is to offer them milk.” Professor Jiraiya waved his wand and a few bottles of milk appeared before them. “Knarls love milk and are more likely to trust a witch or wizard when milk is offered to them. They see it as a symbol of trust.”

Professor Jiraiya gave each of them a Knarl and they began feeding them milk in small metal dishes. Kakashi always liked his Care of Magical Creatures lessons, for Professor Jiraiya always made sure to instil some element of fun into their learning. Professor Jiraiya conjured up a big bonfire and they situated themselves around it, majority of his classmates huddling as close as possible to the warmth. Kakashi sat a little farther from the rest, nestling his Knarl in his gloved hands and thinking if he could own one as a pet.

From the corner of his eye, he noticed a few students loitering near the lake in the distance. He glanced at them, wondering why anyone would want to freeze their butts off in this chilly weather, and was surprised to see that Obito was one of the boys; the Slytherin looked up, as though he’d sensed a pair of eyes on him. They made eye contact.

Kakashi hastily looked down, avoiding the gaze of the other. His Knarl was trying to escape and he clutched it tighter. Kakashi started feeding it milk, pushing the dish towards its small snout and watched as his Knarl lapped it up with its small, pink tongue. He was aware of the fact that the boys had sat down on an old, dead trunk on the river bank and that Obito was eyeing him. Kakashi cast a few flitted glances in the Slytherins’ direction and was always faced with the same sight – Obito was facing him and watching him intensely.

Kakashi gulped as he stroked his Knarl. What was he trying to do? Was he trying to get on his nerves? Did he enjoy watching Kakashi get uncomfortable under his stare? Getting lost in his thoughts, Kakashi continued stroking his Knarl unconsciously. The little creature fidgeted and instantly, shot its quills out.

“Fuck,” Kakashi cursed out loud, flicking his bruised hand away.

Many of his classmates turned to stare at him. Ebisu sniggered.

“Watch your language, boy,” said Professor Jiraiya sternly, to which Kakashi muttered a quick apology.

He glanced towards the lake again, to see if Obito had seen his embarrassing moment. It seemed that he had, for the Slytherin had burst out laughing, eyes twinkling as he looked at Kakashi.

 _Great_ , Kakashi thought grimly. _Just great._

They ended their lesson after half an hour, carrying steaming mugs of hot chocolate Professor Jiraiya had conjured up for them as they walked back to the castle, chattering amongst themselves. Kakashi cast a casual glance back and saw that the three Slytherins were following them. Obito was still staring at him. They headed straight to the Great Hall, ignoring the many protests of the other students as their boots made dirty, wet marks on the floor. Dinner was just being served.

Kakashi met an extremely nervous-looking Tenzo, and what looked like the top of Rin’s head as the third-year tried to eat her dinner as fast as possible.

“Easy there,” Kakashi said as he sat down. “You don’t want to throw it back up when you’re in the air.”

“If I do, it’s a sign of protest,” said Rin angrily. “Konan should really loosen up. Asking us to arrive half an hour early? Is she mental?”

Kakashi turned to an ashen-faced Tenzo.

“Hey, are you alright?” he asked in concern.

Tenzo nodded wordlessly. He wasn’t eating.

“You should eat something,” said Kakashi.

When Tenzo didn’t respond, he said, “Don’t worry, you’ll do fine. Just relax. Being nervous won’t help you fly well.”

He clapped a hand on Tenzo’s shoulder.

Rin got up. “Bye, gotta go,” she said, cheeks puffed up with food.

Kakashi snorted fondly, _that girl_.

“Alright,” he then muttered sadly. He wished he could be there for the try-outs, but he had detention with Professor Uchiha.

He spent the next half an hour trying to calm Tenzo’s nerves. He managed to get the boy to eat a small sandwich and watched as the younger boy headed for the Quidditch pitch. Kakashi sighed, moving in the opposite direction and trudging up to Professor Uchiha’s office. He knocked on the door and a soft voice said, “Come in.”

“Ah, Kakashi,” said Professor Uchiha, putting The Daily Prophet aside. “Yes, I have something for you to do.”

The professor stood up and moved over to a large cupboard, moss green robes billowing out behind him. He opened the cupboard and took out a mop and a bucket. He went over to Kakashi and handed him the items.

“You will be mopping the hospital wing and the corridor adjacent to it. A student has left a huge mess on the floor after consuming an expired puking pastille and losing the other end while he was heading for the hospital wing. The student is now cured, but I have told the matron to leave the vomit on the floor for one of my students,” said Professor Uchiha. “You will not be using any form of magic to aid your cleaning. If I catch you doing so, I will make sure that you will be cleaning much worse substances than human vomit next time.”

Kakashi stared miserably at the mop and bucket and made his way down to the first floor. He stared at the corridor in horror – the student had seriously made a huge mess as there was a long trail of vomit all the way from the staircase to the hospital wing. Sighing, Kakashi slushed his mop around in the soapy water.

After an hour, Kakashi’s arms were aching and his shirt was sticking to his back. He leant against the mop, scanning the clean room and checking to see if he’d missed any vomit. There was none. He grabbed his bucket and dragged the items back to Professor Uchiha’s office, stopping at the staircase to fling his robes over his shoulder.

Too infuriated to knock, he barged in, banging the items down on the floor. Professor Uchiha looked up.

“I must say, I’m impressed,” he said. “That was much faster than I had expected.”

Kakashi just stood there, glaring at his professor.

“I will check the hospital wing to see if you did a good job.” Professor Uchiha returned to reading The Daily Prophet. “For now, you may go.”

Barely refraining himself from flipping the finger at his much-loathed professor, Kakashi turned on his heels and stormed out of the office, anger boiling in his veins. He rubbed his sore shoulders, wishing his dormitory’s bathroom wasn’t out of order, for he really needed a hot bath right then to calm himself down, as well as to loosen those tight muscles.

“Kakashi! Kakashi!” a voice called out and Kakashi turned, his tired eyes falling on a beaming Tenzo, whose face was still flushed from flying and whose dark brown hair still had bits of snow stuck in it.

“I made it! I made the team!” he exclaimed.

“That’s great,” Kakashi smiled. “Awesome! Now we can train together.”

“Yeah,” said Tenzo happily.

Kakashi reached up and brushed some of the snow off Tenzo’s hair, and the younger boy looked at him in surprise. His ears turned red.

“Thanks,” he mumbled and Kakashi smiled.

“So, um…” Tenzo began. He immediately dropped his happy demeanour and was now looking at the floor nervously.

“Yes?”

“Are you going to Hogsmeade this weekend?” asked Tenzo, his eyes still fixed on the floor.

“No,” replied Kakashi.

“Oh,” Tenzo looked up at him. “Why not?”

Kakashi bit his lip. His parents always signed his forms, but he rarely visited the wizarding village. “I don’t really have anyone to go with,” he confessed, a little ashamed.

“Do you… want to go with me?” asked Tenzo.

Kakashi stared at Tenzo, contemplating his offer. “Sure,” he said, after a while. He didn’t have much to do anyway – well, besides his huge pile of homework. But he was sure he could manage. He was a Ravenclaw after all, and based on what Professor Uchiha said, one adept in proper time-management.

Tenzo’s entire frame relaxed and his face lit up. “Really? You don’t mind?”

Kakashi chuckled. The younger boy was adorable. “As long as you treat me Firewhisky,” he said cheekily.

“Deal,” said Tenzo brightly, causing Kakashi to laugh out loud.

“Are you heading back to the common room?” Kakashi gestured in the direction of the Ravenclaw Tower.

“No, I need to pick up a couple of books from the library.” Tenzo smiled. “I’ll see you around.”

He walked back in the direction he came from. Kakashi made his way back to the Ravenclaw Tower, undeniably feeling quite happy he finally had someone to go to Hogsmeade with. He’d tried to hang out with Ebisu’s group of friends once, but felt awkward and left out, so he stopped visiting the small wizarding village. He rounded a corner and stopped dead in his tracks. Obito was sitting on the bottom step. He looked up as Kakashi arrived.

Obito got up and Kakashi attempted to walk past him. He stopped when he felt a hand close around his wrist. “Avoiding me?”

Kakashi turned to glare at the Slytherin. The other boy’s expression was unreadable, but Kakashi knew he was mocking him. He shook his hand away. “Should I be looking for you?” he spat venomously.

“Don’t you miss me?” The Slytherin half-smiled.

Kakashi glowered at Obito. Obito had a purpose, Kakashi knew, for no way in hell would the Slytherin crawl up all the way from the dungeons just to torture him. “What is it? Spit it out,” he said acidly.

“You know me well,” Obito chuckled. “Well, since you’re not going to Hogsmeade this weekend and are being stuck in this castle like the loner you are—”

“I am going to Hogsmeade.”

“What?” said Obito, surprised eyes on Kakashi’s face. “With whom?” he demanded.

“That’s none of your business,” said Kakashi.

“Is it Tenzo?” asked Obito.

Kakashi said nothing. He continued glaring at Obito.

“It is, isn’t it?” said Obito. His expression became dark. “You should stay away from him. I have a bad feeling about him.”

Kakashi scoffed. “What? You think he’s Voldemort's son?”

“He might be,” Obito muttered darkly.

“You’re ridiculous,” said Kakashi, taking a step back up the stairs. “I don’t even know why I’m wasting my time talking to you.” He turned around and was about to leave Obito at the foot of the stairs, when—

“I’m sorry.”

Kakashi froze, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Did the great Uchiha Obito just apologise to him?

“About last night,” Obito continued. “I shouldn’t have forced myself on you like that.”

Kakashi did not turn to look at Obito. He didn’t say a word either as he continued on his way, mind whirring, once again, in confusion at Obito’s bizarre behaviour. He wished his heart would stop palpitating like it was fucking high on nicotine. He didn’t want to admit that Obito had given him his best orgasm to date, nor did he want to admit that he had secretly enjoyed last night’s session much more than he’d have liked. It was sick and Kakashi hated how Obito managed to have such a drastic effect on him. Therefore, he didn’t say anything, relishing in the fact that the Slytherin probably thought he hated his guts. And he did, just not as much as he should have, for his heart was in the fucking way. He walked past the common room, stopping when Ebisu came up to him.

“The bathroom’s fixed,” he informed Kakashi. “I told Professor Namikaze about it and he came up to fix it with a simple spell.”

Kakashi nodded, relieved and glad that fucking finally, someone had the sense to report the issue to their Head of House. He entered his dormitory, thinking he probably should get that hot bath now, since the bathroom was working again and he really needed a distraction to get his mind off Obito. He supposed Professor Uchiha’s essay could wait.

*******

It was cold. The frosty air nibbled at Kakashi’s exposed fingers as he slogged his way down to the Quidditch pitch. He was in very low spirits, for the rest of the week hadn’t gone well for him. Sure, he had managed to painstakingly complete all his week’s assignments, but he was blessed with an even heavier homework-load for the weekend and he wondered if his teachers were just sadistic bastards who liked to see their students suffer under tremendous amounts of pressure. Not to mention, the stress he was receiving from Obito was just adding to his misery.

The boy did not technically do anything; in fact, he appeared to be avoiding Kakashi as much as Kakashi was avoiding him. Not that Kakashi had noticed, but whenever the Ravenclaw looked back during class, he’d sometimes see the Slytherin turning his head swiftly in the other direction – it was almost cute.

 _Bleagh_ , thought Kakashi, shaking his head. He couldn’t believe he had just called the Slytherin cute. He was anything but. Rather hot, but that was beside the point.

Kakashi groaned as he dragged his Nimbus Two Thousand and Two across the ground. He was beyond caring to see if its bristles were catching on any twigs on the ground. He’d been begging his parents, or more specifically, his mother to let him buy a Firebolt II, but she was a die-hard Nimbus fan and no matter how many times he swore he’d rip himself off the family tree, she remained adamant about it.

His mother was a pro-Quidditch player who played for the Holyhead Harpies when she was at the peak of her twenties. She’d quit when she reached thirty and had lost some of the speed and stamina she used to possess, but she always claimed that she relived her Quidditch days through Kakashi. Kakashi had no choice but to pursue Quidditch when he arrived at Hogwarts, for his mother had trained him in their backyard for three years before he enrolled, moulding him to become a miniature version of her. He only managed to get in to the Ravenclaw team last year, having failed to do so when he was in his second year, unlike Rin. He found the sport alright – it wasn’t one he’d do out of interest, however – but he did find himself embarrassingly average. His mother always wrote to him after a match, asking him for a play-by-play account of his supposedly superb and astonishing play, and Kakashi always felt a flutter of shame and disappointment in his heart when he found that he didn’t have much to provide. The Ravenclaws did not always win; in fact, they seldom did. Their victories mainly came from their matches against the Hufflepuffs.

He supposed it wasn’t entirely his fault that he couldn’t play as well as his mother had hoped. Kakashi tried to cheer himself up as he hung his school robes in his locker and took out his Quidditch gear. Yes, he never really had the passion for Quidditch, but he thought it was more to do with him being Chaser than anything else. He found the position the most boring out of the four, no offence, and he didn’t particularly fancy passing the Quaffle around as much as he enjoyed blocking it. Yes, if anything, Kakashi was rather envious of his team’s Keeper, Rin, for he’d much like to try stopping a Quaffle or two.

He supposed he could blame his mother, for he tried out for Chaser and got accepted into that position only because she was one and she had forced him to take up the same position. He firmly shut his locker door, resolutely pushing the blame away from himself. Sighing, he slung his broomstick over his shoulder, not before inspecting the ends and thinking glumly that the bristles were still intact and he didn’t have a good reason to pester his parents for a Firebolt II. He left the lockers to walk through the muddy, frozen ground and entered the Quidditch pitch, feeling that sense of liberation and tranquillity he always got whenever he viewed the peaceful stadium with its dark, cropped grass and the six, long golden hoops that gleamed in the morning sunlight. He went over to the middle of the pitch, where a few of his teammates were huddled around a large case.

“Alright, guys,” said Konan in that calm, intimidating demeanour of hers. “There have been a few changes in the line-up of some of the other teams. We need to strategise carefully and observe their dynamics so that we can work out a way to crack their defence. But first, we need to solidify our teamwork. We have two new members joining us this year.”

She nodded at the rest of the team as they arrived together. The two newcomers were amongst them. Kakashi gave Tenzo a smile and the younger beamed back.

“This is Tenzo,” she said as she clapped a hand on his shoulder. “He’ll be our new Seeker. Kurenai,” she indicated a long-haired girl, who seemed almost too eager to be there. “is a Chaser.”

Kakashi eyed his fellow Chaser. He hoped she was less stringent than Konan, who had a competitive streak that was somewhat selfish sometimes, as she tended to hold onto the Quaffle, thinking she could score.

“I’ve found out the new additions to each of the other teams. Slytherin has a new member by the name of Hana, a third-year,” Konan said.

“Oh, that Inuzuka girl, I know her,” said Yahiko, one of their Beaters. “She’s really fierce-looking, but really hot too. What’s she playing?”

“Beater,” responded Konan.

“Damn.” Yahiko whistled.

Konan frowned at her fellow sixth-year for a split second before continuing, “Gryffindor has made a few changes. Apparently, Shiranui Genma was displeased with both his Beaters; I heard there was some rift going on within the team. In summary, he kicked his Beaters out and replaced them with new faces. Their names are Umino Iruka and Deidara. Both are third-years.”

Kakashi knew Deidara, for he was quite famous. He was very well-liked and as far as Kakashi knew, a total prankster. He hadn’t heard of the other boy, however. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one.

“Who’s Iruka?” Yahiko asked.

“I see him in some of my classes,” said Tenzo thoughtfully.

“Do you know much about him?” inquired Konan.

“Not really,” he replied sheepishly. “He’s very quiet and usually just keeps to himself. We haven’t really talked.”

“Let’s just assume Genma chose his Beater well,” said Konan. “There’s also another addition, since their Seeker has graduated. Her name is Uzuki Yugao. She’s incredibly speedy from what I’ve heard.”

The names were only getting more foreign to Kakashi’s ears.

“Hufflepuff has no new additions,” concluded Konan. “Well, I don’t think we have to worry much about Hufflepuff or Slytherin, though I’d like to keep an eye on that Hana girl. What I’m really concerned about is Gryffindor. They’ve made quite a few changes and no doubt, they’ll be coming up with fresh new strategies as well. If the rumours are true, Deidara and Yugao are really good. I don’t know much about Iruka, but he seems promising.”

She kicked the case open to reveal the balls. The case shook as the Bludgers struggled against their restraints.

“Okay, first, I need to assess the two new members’ skills so that I can effectively come up with some new strategies. Let’s start with you, Kurenai. You’ll be playing one-to-one with Kakashi. Rin, guard the posts.”

Kurenai nodded and mounted her broomstick. Kakashi got on his broomstick and kicked off, feeling that familiar rush of cold air against his face. He heard similar whooshes of air beside him and turned to see Kurenai and Rin up in the air. Once they’d reached a suitable altitude, Kakashi whirled around to face Kurenai and Rin headed off to the goalposts.

“Ready?” Konan shouted from below.

Kakashi gripped the Quaffle tightly with his fingers as he fixed his eyes on Kurenai, who was floating directly in front of him, her eyes on the Quaffle. He darted his gaze to the left and sped off, accelerating around the edges of the pitch. Kurenai was good, but she lacked the experience he had with the pitch and hence, his sharp manoeuvres around the stands slowed her down. He sped off towards the goalposts, approaching them from the left. Rin was hovering directly in front of them. He would’ve tried to swerve around her to get to the other goalposts, but he knew Rin well, having trained with her so many times and hence, made a faux turn to the right, smiling when he saw Rin leave the left goalpost and twisted his body around, aiming the Quaffle directly at it. It went in.

“I knew you’d do that,” grumbled Rin as she flew back.

Giving her a cheeky grin, Kakashi went back to the middle of the pitch.

“Nice shot, pretty-face!”

Kakashi frowned and turned towards the stands, his frown deepening into an ugly scowl when he saw a group of Slytherins seated on the top row. Obito was among them, cosily nestled in his thick, woollen cloak as he waved at Kakashi.

He turned back to Konan, face indignant.

“Just ignore them,” said Konan, as though she knew Kakashi was going to ask her to chase them away.

“They came here to spy on us!” Kakashi frowned.

“Yes, and there’s nothing we can do about it,” she said nonchalantly. “Besides, we haven’t come up with any solid strategies yet. Pretty sure they just came to check out the new players.”

Kakashi eyed Obito. He bet Obito didn’t just come to see his competition. The Slytherin smirked at him and he scowled back.

“Kakashi, focus,” said Konan sternly and he turned his attention back to her.

The Quaffle was in his hands again. Feeling utterly self-conscious with the Slytherins watching, he swerved around Kurenai and headed straight for the goalposts, not accelerating as much as he usually would have.

“Why don’t you come ride my broomstick after practice? I bet I can make you shoot a load of stuff!” a mocking voice called out and howls of laughter from the Slytherins followed after.

Kakashi twitched and his fingers loosened. He dropped the Quaffle. Kurenai scooped it up from under him and headed off to the goalposts, passing it through one of the rings in the blink of an eye. Kakashi blinked. He had dropped the Quaffle.

“Kakashi.” Konan had abandoned the ground and was now flying towards him on her broomstick.

He turned to her, embarrassment and shame heating up his face.

She sighed, “Just ignore them, Kakashi. It’s no good letting them affect you. You know how the Slytherins are like.”

Kakashi didn’t speak. He was usually good at ignoring the snide comments from the Slytherins whenever they played against them and all the green-clad spectators booed at the Ravenclaws, but this was Obito, the boy who’d given him a blowjob and literally finger-fucked him a few days ago, and had left him deeply confounded and confused.

Konan clapped a hand on his shoulder, muttering a soft, “Relax,” before going back to her teammates. Kakashi followed her.

“Kurenai, I’m impressed. Your offense is very strong and I think I’d like to use you as one of our attackers,” she praised the red-eyed girl, who flushed at the compliment. “Now, we’ll move on to the Seeker. Tenzo, come here.”

She beckoned Tenzo over and he obliged.

“I’ll be releasing the Snitch and I want you to wait for a minute before you go off to find it, okay?”

The boy with dark brown hair nodded. Konan released the Snitch and it soared up into the sky for a minute before Tenzo kicked off. Kakashi watched Tenzo’s movements and couldn’t help but note how the third-year’s turns and swerves were very much graceful. Tenzo looked effortlessly weightless in the air as he sped around noiselessly, eyes darting around for the Golden Snitch. He saw it two minutes later, his eyes lighting up with an excited sparkle, before he narrowed them in concentration and dipped his broom.

He was elegant – that was all Kakashi could say. He was like an arrow that cut through the air; none of the sharp swerves of the Chasers, even when the Snitch was hovering inches before the stands. Tenzo pelted towards it and Kakashi was sure the boy was going to crash into the stands, when he pulled his broom away with his right hand, his left closing around the Snitch at the last minute before he curved away from the walls.

Kakashi glanced at the Slytherins from the corner of his eye, feeling a slight satisfaction when he saw that they were frowning, scrutinising Tenzo’s movements. Yes, Ravenclaw finally had a Seeker that could rival theirs. He saw Obito’s eyes flicker towards him and he shifted his gaze.

Tenzo returned with the Snitch held tightly in one hand, face betraying the obvious jubilation he felt.

Konan gave him a small smile and said, “Well done.”

He earned himself a couple of claps on his back and when he turned towards Kakashi, Kakashi smiled broadly at him and said, “That was a really good catch.”

Tenzo’s smile widened.

“You two have done really well. I am pleased to welcome you to the team,” smiled Konan as the Ravenclaws hooted. “However, do note that game conditions are very much different from an empty stadium. There will be thirteen other players, most of whom are doing completely different tasks from you, two Bludgers set to knock your brains out of your heads and hundreds of spectators who will either be cheering you on, or doing their best to distract you. But don’t worry,” she added when she saw the look of worry on the newcomers’ faces. “With adequate training, I’m sure you’ll be well prepared during our matches. Now, it’s time to get down to practice.”

They started their training officially, the Ravenclaws shooting up into the sky in high spirits, their exhilaration at gaining two Quidditch wonders apparent on their faces. Kakashi trained with Konan and Kurenai alongside him. Kurenai was a great teammate to work with and Kakashi could appreciate her outstanding skills, now that she was playing with him instead of against him. She was quick and decisive, and had a determined streak that made her a very good offensive player. The same couldn’t quite be said for Kakashi, however, who was normally rather good at what he did, but was getting increasingly distracted by the lame, perverted jokes coming from a certain black-haired Slytherin.

“Kakashi!” Konan had snapped more than once, when Kakashi dropped the Quaffle many times. “Keep your head in the game and concentrate! Seriously, Kurenai’s doing much better than you.”

The girl tried her best to suppress a smile, being obviously delighted at the comment, but also not daring to further worsen Kakashi’s already black mood. All in all, it wasn’t the best practice for Kakashi, but objectively speaking, he could see a little more hope for the Ravenclaws after watching the two new additions play.

The rest of the team made their way back to the locker room together as Kakashi stayed back to help Konan pack. Tenzo hovered around and it wasn’t before Kakashi told him it was fine and that they could manage, did he leave. He huffed as he struggled to press the last Bludger into the box. Konan clasped the two thick metal straps over them.

“Thanks, Kakashi,” she said and carried the heavy box back.

Kakashi slung his broomstick over his shoulder and made his way back to the locker room. His fingers were completely frozen and his face was numb from the cold. He couldn’t wait to get back indoors. He entered the locker room, looking displeased at the muddy tracks of his teammates’ footprints. Sighing, he cleaned them off with a wave of his wand. Kakashi peeled his Quidditch robes off him and grabbing a towel, he headed for the showers.

Kakashi turned on the tap, turning the dial all the way to the red end and sighing in content when the warm water washed down on him, easing his muscles. He took quite a long time – he always did after Quidditch practice – and as he turned off the shower to grab some soap, he heard a voice waft into his stall.

“You’re going to miss the Hogsmeade trip at this rate.”

He froze, hand just barely managing to grip onto the bar of soap. What was Obito doing outside his shower cubicle? Images of that night flowed into his mind but he firmly repressed them.

“What are you doing here?” he called out.

“Making sure you aren’t drowning yourself,” Obito replied. “Are you going to make Tenzo wait? That’s a bit inconsiderate.”

He was annoying. Kakashi started soaping himself, rolling his eyes at Obito’s mock concern. “How long have you been out there?” he asked.

There was a slight pause before Obito answered, “I followed you in.”

“Why?” asked a surprised Kakashi. Another pause. Kakashi laughed, “Thought I was going to touch myself? Perhaps you could have some sort of free show again?”

“I already apologised.”

“I’m not mad,” Kakashi simply said. “But why did you do that?”

“That?”

“That and…” Kakashi hesitated, biting his lip. “Other things. You’ve been acting strange. Like, on and off. You used to keep teasing me, and you still do, but you’re also avoiding me on some days and staring at me on others.”

There was a short silence before Obito sighed. Kakashi could just imagine the other running his hand through dark his hair in a frustrated manner, messing it up as he unconsciously bit his bottom lip. Merlin’s balls, how much had he observed him to know all his little actions by heart?

“Isn’t it obvious?” came Obito’s tired voice.

“Isn’t what obvious?” Kakashi turned on the shower and let the water wash the soap off his body.

“Gosh, Kakashi, I knew you were dumb, but I didn’t know you were this dumb,” Obito said in an annoyed voice. “Maybe they should sort you out of Ravenclaw.”

Kakashi scowled. It was one thing for him to insult his own intelligence, but to have someone else, and a Slytherin for that matter, do so, it made him take major offence.

“I like you.”

“What?” Kakashi wasn’t sure, with the running showerhead and the train of thoughts he’d lost himself in, if Obito had actually said those words.

“I like you, moron.”

Wow, trust Obito to insert an insult right after. Kakashi listened for more, but it appeared the Slytherin had nothing else to say. He was vaguely aware that his shoulder was slowly turning red with the warm water hitting against it nonstop, but he couldn’t bring himself to move. He couldn’t speak either. He was in disbelief.

“Hello? You aren’t really drowning yourself, are you?”

“I’m still alive, dumbass.”

“At least respond or something.” There was a slight waver to Obito’s tone and Kakashi knew the other was awaiting his response.

Kakashi turned off the shower tap and took his towel off the hook. He dried himself in an excruciatingly slow manner, before wrapping his lower body in it and opening the door to the shower.

Obito was there, standing right in front of the door and he was looking down at his shoes, his hands thrust in his cloak pockets. He jumped in surprise when Kakashi opened the door and quickly stepped back so that the door wouldn’t bang against him. He blinked and his eyes roamed down Kakashi’s pale upper body, staring unashamedly at his crotch, which was covered with the thick, white fabric, before averting his gaze.

Kakashi strode past him and went to retrieve his clothes.

“So…?” Obito said.

“So?” Kakashi returned.

Obito shifted his weight from one foot to another. “Come on,” he said. “I just told you I liked you.”

“And?”

“What do you say to that?”

“What do you want me to say to that?” asked Kakashi. He turned to Obito and the Slytherin stared back at him.

“I know you like me,” he said. “You were calling out my name while you masturbated.”

Kakashi continued staring at Obito. “That doesn’t mean I like you,” he said softly.

Obito’s eyes widened and the firm, arrogant set of his jaw was gone. His chin suddenly looked weak. “You- you don’t?”

Kakashi didn’t respond. Instead, he held up his school robes. “Please leave. I need to get changed.”

Obito blinked, and somewhat desolately, turned and mutely strode out of the locker room. Kakashi sighed. He wasn’t lying. He was definitely physically attracted to Obito, but he wasn’t sure if he liked the other boy that way. He placed a hand over his bare chest, frowning. His thumping heart was saying otherwise, however.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fast update! Well, I had the first two chapters ready lol so the next update probably won’t be as fast. Thank you for reading and leaving supportive comments! It really means a lot <3 I wasn’t sure if people would enjoy this, especially those who aren’t familiar with the HP universe :’)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite his stuck-up attitude, Kakashi couldn't help but find the Slytherin Chaser attractive, and he wanted to get into his pants as much as he wanted to shove a broomstick down his throat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obito and Kakashi are 19. Rin is younger than Obito and Kakashi so I made her a third-year while the boys are fourth-years.
> 
> .
> 
> A little information for those who aren’t familiar with Quidditch matches: Each goal scored is worth ten points. After a goal is scored, the opposing team's Keeper throws the Quaffle back into play. The game only ends when the Golden Snitch is caught, or at the agreement of both team Captains. Catching the Golden Snitch is worth 150 points to the team whose Seeker made the catch. The winner of the game is the team with the most points, regardless of who caught the Golden Snitch. As a result, it is possible, although difficult, to win the game even though the opposing team caught the Snitch, if your team is one hundred and sixty or more points ahead.

Tenzo was waiting for him. Kakashi felt bad when he saw the younger pacing slowly around the fountain, kicking the pebbles on the ground. He hurried towards him and Tenzo looked up, smiling when he saw him.

“Thought you'd ditched me,” he chuckled.

“I’m sorry,” Kakashi apologised. “I had to submit my form to Professor Namikaze and I couldn’t find him.” He didn’t add the fact that he’d spent a good fifteen minutes in the locker room after he’d dressed himself, staring blankly at the space ahead of him as he struggled to register Obito’s words.

“Nah, it’s fine,” Tenzo waved his hand. “I’m just glad you’re here.”

"Shall we go, then?"

Tenzo nodded and they set off to walk out of the school together.

“Hey, was it your first time playing? You were really good out there,” said Kakashi, referring to their Quidditch practice earlier that morning, in which Tenzo had managed to catch the Snitch a total of seven times, letting it go every time he caught it.

“Thanks.” Tenzo blushed slightly. “And no, I used to steal my father’s broomstick and ride it around the back garden when I was little. I thought he didn’t notice, but he did, and he was just letting me do it.”

Kakashi chuckled. It seemed like Tenzo had a good relationship with his father.

“You play well too,” Tenzo added after a moment.

Kakashi smiled at the younger wizard. Tenzo always liked to compliment him. “So, how are you coming along with your schoolwork?” he asked.

“Oh, I think I’m doing okay,” replied Tenzo. “I completed my weekend homework on Friday and I finished reading the next chapter for Transfiguration before Quidditch practice.”

“Oh,” Kakashi laughed. He thought back at his unfinished pile of homework in his dorm and laughed some more. “You’re very Ravenclaw.”

“…Thanks?” Tenzo blinked. “Well, I am a Ravenclaw.” He sheepishly laughed.

Kakashi laughed along with him.

They walked all the way to Hogsmeade, chattering amiably. Kakashi got to know more things about Tenzo, like how he always found his mother’s muggle cooking ten times better than anything a witch could conjure, or that his father had been Head Boy when he was at Hogwarts and it was his ambition to follow in his father’s footsteps. It appeared Tenzo was doing really well in his classes too, a feat Kakashi was deeply impressed by, considering the fact that Tenzo took both Arithmancy and Study of Ancient Runes, a combination which many shunned due to their immensely heavy content.

“I didn’t think I’d like Divination,” Kakashi replied when Tenzo asked for the motivation behind his subject choices. “It seemed too much of a bullshit subject.”

“I agree with that,” said Tenzo. “I had trouble deciding between Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures, but I reckoned that since I’m more of a theory person, I’d go for Ancient Runes. I didn’t take Muggle Studies because my mum’s a muggle and, well, I do know a fair bit about them. Did you consider that subject?”

“Nah, it didn’t interest me,” replied Kakashi. “Besides, I don’t think it’d be of any practical use since I’m not planning to work in Muggle Relations.”

“What are you planning to be, then?”

“My mum wants me to follow in her footsteps and play Quidditch, but,” Kakashi bit his lip. “I’ve always wanted to be a Healer.”

“A Healer?” said Tenzo in surprise.

“Bad idea?” Kakashi grimaced, “I used to dream of being an Auror when I was a kid, but Aurors don’t do much these days. I know I may seem a bit self-absorbed sometimes, but I’d really like to do something meaningful.”

“No, no, I think it’s a great idea!” said Tenzo hastily. “I just didn’t expect it, that’s all. You’ll make a great Healer. And I don’t think you’re self-absorbed.”

“Thanks,” muttered Kakashi. “So, what about you? What do you want to be?”

Tenzo thought for a moment before replying, “I’ve always thought of working for Gringotts.”

“Cool. As a Curse-Breaker?”

“No, something more chill. I’m looking into wizard banking. They need good grades in Arithmancy, though.”

“I’m sure you can make it,” said Kakashi. “It’s one of your favourite subjects, isn’t it?”

Tenzo nodded. They had entered the quaint little village of Hogsmeade and were idly glancing around at the snow-capped shophouses. They passed by Honeydukes, and after peering into the warmly-lit interior for a few minutes, mutually agreed that they could come back when it was less crowded. The place was currently brimming full with Hogwarts students.

They walked on, their boots making soft footprints on the snow and a few flakes started to fall on their heads. They arrived at the Three Broomsticks, and Kakashi said, “Let’s go in before we catch a cold.”

They entered the crowded inn, which was packed with students and a few professors. Kakashi and Tenzo managed to find an empty small, round table that seated three people at a dusty corner and sat down, Kakashi taking off his cloak and brushing the small flecks of snow off it before draping it over his chair.

“I’ll get the drinks,” volunteered Tenzo and Kakashi nodded, only too happy to be sitting down and resting his cold, tired legs.

Tenzo disappeared into the crowd of black-clad teenagers and Kakashi glanced around, trying to see if he could recognise any familiar faces. Almost as if his eyes were drawn towards him like a magnet, Kakashi’s gaze fell on Obito, who was sitting at one of the large tables in the middle of the room with a bunch of other Slytherins. Kakashi quickly averted his gaze, afraid that the other would glance in his direction and catch him staring at him.

_“I like you.”_

Kakashi closed his eyes and sighed. He had no idea what to do with Obito. The Slytherin was infuriatingly confusing and he couldn’t figure him out at all.

Tenzo came back, carrying a bottle of Firewhisky and two glasses. Kakashi raised a questioning eyebrow at the bottle of alcohol and Tenzo chuckled, setting the things down on the table.

“I promised you I would buy you Firewhisky,” he said as he popped the bottle and half-filled their glasses.

Kakashi laughed, bringing his glass towards him. “Are you even of age?”

“My birthday was last month,” Tenzo smirked. He put down the bottle after he’d finished pouring out his glass and raised it. “Cheers,” he said, clinking it with Kakashi’s and downing it.

Kakashi chuckled before taking a few sips, feeling the heat from the Firewhisky surge through his system in energetic spurts. “You drink well,” he commented. “This isn’t your first time, is it?” he asked slyly.

Tenzo shrugged ambiguously, pouring himself another glass.

“Don’t drink too much, lest it ruins your brain,” Kakashi joked.

“This right here, is too smart for even the Firewhisky to dumb down,” Tenzo smiled as he tapped his temple, indicating his brain.

He was about to drink his glass when a shadow loomed over their table and Obito said, “Mind if I join you?”

Tenzo blinked and set his glass down.

Kakashi felt a sudden pang of annoyance. “Yes, very much,” he said through gritted teeth.

As though he hadn’t heard Kakashi, Obito pulled up a chair and sat himself down. “I hope I’m not disturbing your cosy little date,” he said.

“What are you doing here? You have your own table,” Kakashi frowned.

“I like this table better,” Obito simply said. He pointed his wand at his previous table and muttered, “Accio glass.” His glass came zooming onto their table, skidding across the wooden surface with a loud screech.

“I see you have Firewhisky. Excellent.” Obito uncorked the bottle and poured himself a generous amount.

The two wizards stared at him and Obito unashamedly ignored the looks of disbelief that were shot in his direction.

“So, anyway,” Tenzo turned to Kakashi, in a desperate attempt to resume a normal conversation. Kakashi looked at Tenzo and tried his best to ignore Obito, who was watching them beadily. “I’ve been wanting to ask you how it’s like during matches. Since, you know, Konan said it was different.”

Kakashi fingered his glass. “It is different,” he said eventually. “For one thing, you’re extremely nervous. And you know, when you’re nervous, you don’t tend to perform as well. I fell off my broom during my first game because I was shaking like mad.” He smiled when he saw Tenzo’s worried look. “Don’t worry. I can tell you’re pretty apprehensive about this, which is good – shows that you’re serious about Quidditch. But, don’t let your nerves get the better of you. There is a way to condition yourself for the games, and that is to pretend that you’re in a match every time you’re training. That way, you get used to having that mindset and it’ll make it easier for you to slip into game mode during a match.”

Tenzo nodded silently.

Deciding to lift his teammate’s spirits up, seeing as the younger boy was still looking a bit uncertain, Kakashi said, “You’re a really good Seeker, Tenzo. Really. I don’t think any of the other teams’ Seekers can match up to you. And you’re only in your third year. You have a lot of potential in you, so don’t fret.”

Tenzo turned slightly pink and the corners of his lips twitched up into a shy smile.

“Yeah,” said Obito suddenly. “You were really good out there. Kakashi couldn’t keep his eyes off you. I swear, it’s like he’s infatuated with you.”

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Obito. His words were dripping with sarcasm and there was a hint of something he couldn’t quite identify – it was something like spite.

Tenzo, however, was looking at Kakashi, as though waiting to see if he would affirm it.

“Don’t listen to him,” said Kakashi hastily, shooting Obito a glare. “He’s just spouting crap.”

Tenzo nodded again and silently took another sip of his Firewhisky. The two Ravenclaws chatted for a bit, though the atmosphere was slightly tense and awkward, for Obito had resorted to fixing Kakashi with an unwavering stare. Kakashi shifted uncomfortably under the intensity of it.

Setting his half-empty glass down, Tenzo finally said, “Shall we go?”

When Kakashi shot him an inquiring look, Tenzo flitted a glance to his left, silently indicating Obito. Kakashi nodded and they got up, abandoning their bottle of Firewhisky, which was still a quarter full. Kakashi looked down at it, thinking it was such a waste they couldn’t finish it, but they weren’t allowed to bring it back up to Hogwarts either.

Obito looked up in astonishment when the pair of them stood up, and blurted out, “Where are you going?”

“We’re heading out for a walk,” said Tenzo curtly.

“I’ll come with you,” said Obito, his gaze on Tenzo’s hand, which was gently tugging at Kakashi’s arm. Tenzo opened his mouth to say something, but Obito interrupted him, “I insist.” He got up and forced himself in between the two Ravenclaws.

Kakashi’s eyes widened in surprise at the odd, uncustomary behaviour and Tenzo was looking completely pissed.

Obito slung an arm around Kakashi’s shoulders and said, “Now, where are we off to, pretty-face?” He winked.

Kakashi shrugged Obito’s arm off and looked at Tenzo. “Let’s head back to Honeydukes. I think the crowd has thinned by now.”

Tenzo looked sceptically at Obito.

Kakashi sighed, “Let him come along. At least it’ll shut him up.”

Tenzo continued to stare at Obito, who shot him a cold glance, as though challenging him to refuse the idea. He sighed. “I guess we have no choice,” he muttered before striding off.

The trio walked briskly towards the source of the mouth-watering, caramel smell and gladly entered the warmth of the sweet-shop. They browsed through the aisles, which were only wide enough to accommodate one person at a time, and hence, they filed through them in a single line. Tenzo eventually wandered off to look at some Liquorice Wands, while Kakashi remained to examine a new special pack of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, which promised new, unique flavours.

“What is your favourite sweet?”

Kakashi looked up to find Obito staring at him. He noticed that the Slytherin’s face was only inches away from his and he took a step back.

“That’s a random question,” he said, putting the packet of Bertie Bott's down.

“Do you like Chocolate Frogs?” inquired Obito as Kakashi picked one up.

“Everyone likes Chocolate Frogs,” said Kakashi, putting it back down and taking up a new ‘Albino Frog’ version to examine – it was essentially a Chocolate Frog made up of white chocolate. Apparently it was less sweet than the original ones.

“Pepper Imps?” Obito asked again as Kakashi picked up said object.

Kakashi turned to Obito. “Why are you interrogating me?” he questioned.

Obito looked at him and Kakashi met his dark eyes. The Ravenclaw didn’t know if it was the warm, fuzzy atmosphere of the shop that was inducing this, but he felt strangely warm inside, like he could melt in the other’s gaze. Kakashi glanced away.

“I just want to know more about you,” said Obito softly.

Kakashi swallowed at the words, which were making him feel unusually nervous. He placed the box of Pepper Imps back on the shelf and continued to silently browse through the sweets, knowing well that Obito was following him, and that he had his eyes on him. After a few minutes of silence, he said, “Fizzing Whizbees.” He didn’t really like sweets, but if he had to pick a favourite, it would be those chocolate bees.

“Me too,” Obito said immediately.

Kakashi snorted. “Did you just say that because I said I like it?”

Obito shrugged, his gaze still on Kakashi. There was a hint of a smile on his lips.

Kakashi felt a weird, tingly sensation erupt in his chest and he blinked before looking away.

_“I like you.”_

_No_ , thought Kakashi firmly, trying to stop that recurring memory from looping around in his mind, spinning it in a dizzying manner.

Tenzo came up to them just then, one hand clutching a paper bag. “You aren’t getting anything?” he asked Kakashi, who shook his head. “Okay. Want to head back, then?”

“Yes,” replied Kakashi and they exited the shop.

Kakashi was about to step out of the shelter and into the white, snowy outdoors, when Tenzo placed a hand on Kakashi’s arm and murmured, “Hold up.” He then stepped closer and began to straighten Kakashi’s scarf. It was a gesture that was fonder than usual and Kakashi stepped back when he was done, letting out an awkward laugh. He shot a glance at Obito by instinct and saw that the other was wearing a slightly constipated look, as though he was restraining himself.

They walked back in silence. The snow wasn’t falling so heavily now; it floated down in light, feathery flecks. They reached the edge of the village, with Obito still trailing half a step behind them. Kakashi could almost feel his gaze boring into the back of his head and he determinedly kept his eyes forward, though he could feel a red flush slowly creeping up his neck.

For fuck’s sake, it wasn’t like he was in love with Obito. The thought hit him with a light-headed spell and he suddenly found himself imagining him holding Obito’s hand on cold days like this, hearing his sniggers and boisterous laughter everyday and walking long distances together either in silence, or while holding a lengthy conversation.

 _You’re a fucking idiot, Kakashi_ , he thought angrily. _Obito’s a jerk and you’re an idiot._

_“I like you.”_

Kakashi groaned internally.

They started on their walk back to school. It was nearing late-afternoon and small streaks of pink started appearing in the sky as the sun touched the horizon. There were a few students walking back up – a group of first-years, a few Slytherin girls, and a pair of Hufflepuff seventh-years. The group of Slytherins were in front of them and they kept looking back at the trio.

Kakashi was just beginning to wonder what it was that interested them, when a confident-looking purple-haired girl called out, “Obito!”

The trio stopped in their tracks and Kakashi and Tenzo turned to look at the boy who’d been silently trailing behind them. Obito raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Come join us!” said the witch, whom Kakashi now recognised to be Anko. “Inabi managed to smuggle some Firewhisky in and now they’re having a party in the common room.”

Obito thought it over, his eyes flitting over to Kakashi’s face once before he walked over to the girls. The fourth-year Slytherins burst into giggles and Anko shot him a coy, flirty smile before boldly slipping her hand into the crook of Obito’s elbow. Obito let it remain there.

With a pang in his chest, Kakashi realised that all the girls were really, really pretty and it wasn’t before Tenzo had called his name for the third time, did he tear his eyes away from the laughing group and trudge glumly back to the castle alongside him. He kept his eyes on the group in front of him, telling himself over and over again that the boiling heat in his stomach was probably just a result of the Firewhisky he had drank and that he probably shouldn’t be feeling so fucking upset over the fact that Obito had left him so readily.

***

Kakashi was pissed. He’d been studying in the library, enjoying the centrally-heated environment and being completely engrossed in his Defensive Magical Theory (2nd Edition), when he was interrupted by his childhood friend. Rin had pleaded with him to accompany her to the Quidditch pitch, as Konan had asked her to spy on the Gryffindor Quidditch team in order to figure out their tactics. Kakashi had refused to go, saying that he needed to finish reading chapter seventeen of his Defence Against the Dark Arts textbook, and then proceed on to his six pages of Ancient Runes translations.

Rin had begged miserably, and then threatened to petrify Kakashi and drag him over to the pitch, before Kakashi finally agreed, partly out of pity and partly because the librarian had chased them out as a result of Rin’s hyperbolic outbursts.

Therefore, Kakashi was seated next to Rin in the Quidditch pitch stands, full of grumbles, with one hand clutching his Ancient Runes textbook and the other determinedly scribbling his translations down on a piece of parchment. His handwriting was almost completely illegible, as his lap was not a very ideal place to write on. The inkpot that was balanced precariously on his knee wobbled when the Gryffindor Seeker whizzed over his head, trying to chase after the Snitch. Kakashi glared at Yuugao, who raced above the stands.

“Come on, Kakashi,” said Rin, binoculars held up as she stared in the direction of the goalposts. “You can do your homework later. Just help me figure out their tactics.”

Kakashi turned his glare to Rin. “You mean I figure out the tactics while you ogle at the Gryffindor Keeper?”

“That’s what friends are for,” Rin gave him a wink, glancing down at Kakashi before continuing to spy on Genma, who was hovering in between the goalposts. She was sighing like the stupid, little schoolgirl she secretly was as she traced Genma’s movements with her binoculars.

Kakashi was both extremely amused and annoyed at Rin’s antics. Finally, he said, “Why don’t you go talk to him after practice?”

Rin whipped her head round to Kakashi. “Are you crazy?” she hissed. “He’ll never like me if I do that. He’ll think I’m desperate.”

“Well, you are,” shrugged Kakashi. He felt a sharp jab in his ribs and glared at his friend. “Will you stop doing that?” he said in annoyance.

“No,” replied Rin, sticking her wand into Kakashi’s ribs again.

The small feud ended with Kakashi sitting three seats away from Rin, arms crossed and features scrunched up into a scowl as he watched the Gryffindors practise. His friend was wasting his precious study time by dragging him all the way here and she wasn’t even grateful for his sacrifice.

Kakashi made a few short mental notes on the Gryffindor players. They weren’t anything fancy; sure, the new Beaters were good, especially Iruka, who, Kakashi noticed with a tinge of admiration, had an aim so good, he could knock a Bludger directly at someone’s nose from fifty feet away. Their Seeker was good too, but she was too light to speed up her Nimbus Two Thousand and Two, and since Kakashi owned the same broom, he knew that you had to lean your weight in to accelerate the damn thing.

Another reason to get a Firebolt II, he noted, pining for the broomstick which would allow him to move it as he pleased with a single touch.

Kakashi watched the Gryffindors play, with Rin beside him on her binoculars, giving small yelps of admiration whenever Genma so much as touched the Quaffle, even if he failed to block it. Rin gave a particularly loud shriek when Genma performed a tricky move, in which he rolled over on his broom, hung onto it with one hand and his legs, and hit the Quaffle away with an outstretched arm. And Kakashi wasn’t exactly sure, but he thought he saw the Gryffindor Keeper look in the direction of the stands with a small smile on his face, as though he was thoroughly amused by Rin. Kakashi reckoned his friend didn’t need to worry much about what Genma thought of her, and once the Gryffindors had ended practice and were packing their stuff, he decided to give them a little push.

“Talk to him,” he told Rin.

“But…” Rin trailed off, her eyes betraying her conflicted thoughts as she stared at the lean Captain taking off his Keeper helmet.

“Genma!” Kakashi shouted and waved an arm in the air.

Rin’s eyes widened and she made to pull Kakashi’s arm back, but it was too late, for the Gryffindor Captain had already looked up.

“Rin wants to talk to you–” A hand was forcefully clapped over Kakashi’s mouth and he could see Rin’s eyes burning in despair and panic.

“What the fuck are you doing?” she hissed.

Kakashi chanced a glance at the pitch. Genma was telling one of his Chasers something. She nodded and continued packing the things. He mounted his broom and kicked off, idly making his way over to the Ravenclaws. He slid off his broom neatly and stood in front of them.

Rin had retracted her hand and was now staring anywhere but at the sweaty Quidditch player.

“Yes?” Genma said, his eyes on Rin. There was a sparkle of amusement in them and now that he wasn’t in Captain-mode, Kakashi thought he looked like a rather nice fellow.

“My friend wants to ask you something,” Kakashi told him.

Genma looked at Rin expectantly, an amused smile still playing on his lips. Kakashi nudged his stoic friend, who turned to him blankly. The Gryffindor Captain chuckled and Rin looked at him in surprise, as though the deep rumble of his voice had startled her. Her forehead was shining with a sheen of sweat, even though it was zero degrees celcius, and Kakashi could tell that his friend was very nervous.

“Do you want to go on the next Hogsmeade trip with me?” Rin blurted out, her voice a pitch higher than usual.

Genma looked taken aback, though his lips never lost that small upward quirk. “Are you asking me out?” he laughed.

“No– I– er… maybe,” Rin said rapidly.

Genma smiled – it was a broad, handsome smile. “When’s the next Hogsmeade trip?” he asked.

Rin gaped. “Is that a yes?”

Genma shrugged and smiled again. Kakashi looked between the two – Rin had a sappy, love-struck look on her face, while Genma seemed to find everything Rin said to be amusing. The both of them were only looking at each other and Kakashi knew this was his cue to escape.

Grabbing his bag, he told Rin, “I’ll see you back in the castle,” and left the two simpering idiots to figure themselves out. Kakashi cast one last glance behind him and assured himself that Rin could manage. He made his way out of the pitch, already mentally translating his runes in his head – he really needed to get down to his translations that day, or else he wouldn’t be able to finish them by the next day.

His cloak billowed behind him. His fingers were already frozen stiff in the cold, even though he had them thrust deep in his cloak’s pockets. His face felt numb – he couldn’t even feel his nose. Kakashi passed by the Owlery and strolled along the edge of the Forbidden forest. The trees were stripped bare, such that the forest now looked like a mass of black, looming figures. It would’ve looked scary, but Kakashi found himself admiring the way the snow clung onto the corners of the branches and shimmered like melted crystal. It was a peaceful walk and despite the cold, Kakashi appreciated his decision of going by this route. His boots sank into the soft snow and he ducked whenever the branches of the peripheral trees were low enough to hit his head. Some of the twigs bristled against the top of his head and soon, he could feel his hair starting to get a little damp as the small dusts of snow melted in between the strands. He looked over to his right, catching sight of the majestic castle standing before him in all its anachronistic glory.

Kakashi looked up at the grey, monochrome sky – he estimated that it was around three o’ clock. He quickened his pace ever so slightly as the worry for his unfinished Ancient Runes homework seeped into his mind.

Kakashi caught sight of the gamekeeper’s hut as it appeared before him, unshrouded by the trees. A small waft of smoke was crawling up from its chimney and he supposed Orochimaru must be home. Kakashi didn’t like the man much, for the few times he had interacted with him only showed that the gamekeeper was slightly less than a madman. With large, piercing eyes that liked to stare at the students as they walked past, coupled with a creepy, leering grin, and extremely pale skin, Kakashi never had a good impression of Orochimaru from the start, but he supposed he should sympathise with his plight. He’d heard many rumours about Orochimaru, and he didn’t know which were true, or if any of them was true at all, but there was a general consensus upon the fact that Orochimaru had been expelled from his previous school and banned from using magic because of something he had done in the past.

Some said he was a student at Castelobruxo, others said he was from Durmstrang, but it was widely accepted as a fact that he never was a student at Hogwarts. He had only come here because their Headmistress had been kind enough to offer him a job, when no other employer would take in a wizard who couldn’t do magic and had a bad record under his name. Kakashi watched as the door opened and the man appeared. He wondered what Orochimaru did to get himself expelled from his previous school.

He brought his gaze back to the forest, not wishing to make eye contact with the slightly crazed man. The depths of the forest were dark, and he couldn’t see past the first ten rows of trees or so, but he thought he saw a velvety shadow gliding across the snowy forest ground in the far distance. He squinted, his footsteps slowing down – he knew there were lots of dangerous creatures in the forest, which was why no one was allowed inside it, but he’d never seen signs of life this close to the boundary.

“Wondering what that is?” said a low voice.

Kakashi jumped and halted in his tracks. He glanced in front of him and saw that Orochimaru had sat down on the steps to his hut and was eyeing him beadily. The man tilted his head to one side, giving him a crooked smile.

Kakashi shuddered. “Probably one of the many beasts lurking around,” he replied.

“The dangerous ones or the very dangerous ones?” said Orochimaru, his gaze never wavering. He got off the steps and walked over to Kakashi.

Kakashi instinctively took a step back; whether he did something bad or not in the past, Kakashi didn’t really want to associate himself with the wide eyed, slightly mad wizard in front of him.

Orochimaru stopped a few paces before Kakashi. He stared at him for a few seconds before reaching over to tie a long, thin rope Kakashi hadn’t noticed he was carrying, to a tree stump. He reached beneath his patched cloak and drew out a bell before sliding the rope through it. He took the other end of the rope and tied it to another stump, which was a few feet away. Kakashi watched, slightly intrigued and yet, slightly creeped out at the same time.

Orochimaru got up from his crouched position. “Know what this is?” he gestured at the rope, which was now pulled taut between the two stumps, the bell jingling lightly as it dangled on it.

Kakashi shrugged.

“It’s an alarm,” Orochimaru said in a raspy whisper. “I’m going to set an alarm outside my house. Wanna know why?” He stepped over the rope and walked closer to Kakashi.

Kakashi’s boots shifted backwards ever so slightly. Orochimaru stopped directly in front of him. Kakashi could smell mulled mead from the breath of the gamekeeper. He took a decisive step back.

“There are Lethifolds in the forest,” continued Orochimaru in that same dramatic whisper.

Kakashi stared at him in shock. “No, there aren’t,” he said.

“Oho,” laughed Orochimaru. It was an unpleasant laugh. “Think you’re so clever, do you? Bet you’re gloating over the fact that you know this because you’ve studied your Care of Magical Creatures textbook? Because you’re a fully qualified wizard?”

A small drop of spit hit the corner of Kakashi’s mouth and he took another step back. He was growing increasingly frightened of the man before him. Orochimaru leant forward and Kakashi could see that his eyes were bloodshot.

“But I know more than you,” continued the gamekeeper. “I’ve seen one, a Lethifold. It’s there.” He whipped a finger in the direction of the forest. Kakashi glanced at its dark depths before turning back to him. “And it’s biding its time. Waiting for someone, such as yourself,” Orochimaru gave such a hard poke to Kakashi’s chest that he stumbled back in surprise. “To walk along the edge of the forest alone, with no one to care for where you’ve gone, and then it would come out and strangle you to death.”

His voice dropped to a soft whisper towards the end and Kakashi felt a cold shiver trail down his spine. He couldn’t look away from the wide, mad, bloodshot eyes. The gamekeeper continued moving closer to Kakashi, making him feel extremely disconcerted.

“Kakashi!”

A surge of relief rushed through him. He whipped his head round, and so did Orochimaru, in the direction of the voice and saw Obito walking towards him. The Slytherin’s eyes were narrowed darkly as he glared at Orochimaru. The gamekeeper stared as Obito gripped Kakashi’s arm tightly, the force of it making him wince, before pulling him away from the leering gamekeeper.

“Piss off, fuckface,” said Obito angrily.

Orochimaru paid no heed to Obito’s words as he tilted his head and continued to eye Kakashi. “Remember what I said,” he told a wide-eyed Kakashi. “Stay away from the forest.”

Obito’s grip on Kakashi’s arm tightened as he pulled the boy towards him slightly. Orochimaru took another menacing step towards Kakashi.

Obito plunged his hand inside his robes before brandishing his wand. He pointed it directly at Orochimaru.

Orochimaru gave a bone-chilling laugh. “Don’t you point your wand at me,” he snarled, features distorted into an ugly scowl.

Obito didn’t lower his wand. Both Orochimaru and Obito were glaring fiercely at each other, neither of them blinking; Kakashi could feel the tension summiting. Eventually, Orochimaru dropped his gaze and gazed stonily at Obito’s wand. Without another word, he turned around and went back to his hut, slamming the door behind him.

Obito lowered his wand. “Fucking madman,” he muttered, turning to Kakashi. “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” Kakashi responded. “How did you know—”

“I saw you from the Owlery,” said Obito. “It looked like the troll-faced idiot was cornering you.”

“Thanks,” murmured Kakashi.

There was an awkward silence.

“Were you heading back to the castle?” asked Obito.

“Yes.” Kakashi tightened the strap of his bag around his body. He started walking and Obito fell into step beside him.

They made their way up a snow-covered path to the Herbology greenhouses; the glass was frosted over and the rafters had small icicles peeking out from below the edge. There was a soft magical quality to their wintry surroundings.

“What’s your favourite season?” asked Obito.

“Why the sudden question?” Kakashi asked back.

“Like I said,” said Obito, keeping his eyes trained on the ground. “I want to know more about you.”

It was rather slippery and with the small incline they were moving up against, Kakashi felt the need to put more conscious thought into each of his steps. “Well,” he began, not really knowing what to make of the statement. “I like winter.”

“Winter,” repeated Obito. “Why?”

“It’s cold,” Kakashi shrugged.

Obito nodded, as if that made perfect sense.

Kakashi glanced at him. He subconsciously registered the sight of Obito’s sharp profile standing out against the pale, icy backdrop, his hair lightly ruffled by the winter wind. Kakashi had the urge to reach out and pat his hair back in place, but of course, he didn’t, for that would be fucking weird and why would he want to touch Obito’s hair in the first place?

Obito looked back at him and they locked gazes, Kakashi taken aback by how the other’s irises had grey streaks due to the reflection of the snow. Obito looked great in winter. Kakashi turned away, slightly abashed by the fact that he’d been caught staring.

He coughed lightly. “My turn,”

“Your turn?” Obito chuckled in amusement, the corners of his eyes crinkling as his eyes sparkled.

“Yes. I get to ask you a question,” said Kakashi.

“Why?”

“Because you asked me one.”

“Is this how it works?” Obito laughed. “Shoot, pretty-face.”

Kakashi was surprised to find himself used to the nickname. “Why do you like me?” he asked.

Obito stopped laughing, his eyes narrowing in caution. Kakashi noticed how his eyes were no longer dark and sparkly; they were instead, shrouded and withdrawn. “I don’t know.” he bit his bottom lip.

“You don’t know?”

Obito opened his mouth before closing it again. He then said nonchalantly, “It doesn’t matter. It’s not like you like me or anything.”

Kakashi glanced sideways at him. “I never said I didn’t.”

Obito stopped in his tracks and Kakashi did too. They both stared at each other. “You… like me?” he said uncertainly, licking his lips.

“I didn’t say I did, either,”

Obito ran his hand over his hair, messing it up even more. Kakashi’s gaze flitted towards it before he turned away.

“You’re frustrating, you know that?”

“No more frustrating than you,” Kakashi uttered quietly.

“Excuse me?” said Obito blankly.

Kakashi continued walking, feeling the wind wrap itself around his frame. He licked his lips, which had gone extremely dry and Kakashi wasn’t sure if it was solely because of the weather.

“What do you mean by that?” came Obito’s voice from behind him.

Kakashi continued walking, putting one stiff, frozen foot in front of the other.

“Kakashi–”

Kakashi whipped around and saw a surprised Obito. His cheeks were flushed red from the cold. The colouration looked slightly odd against his tan skin, for Kakashi knew the boy rarely flushed.

“I don’t like the way you act,” Kakashi said bluntly. “I don’t like your sharp remarks or your mean insults because they hurt me sometimes. I don’t like how you act as though you are entitled to everything, like you own the whole fucking world. You’re an ass, and I don’t like that. I want to like you, Obito.” Kakashi started backing away. “But you’re not giving me the chance to.”

He felt his heart drop a little as the Slytherin blinked and for the first time ever, looked defenceless. He turned and walked away from Obito. Winter had never felt chillier; there seemed to be a permanent frost over his heart.

Kakashi trudged up to the greenhouses, gladly opening the door and embracing the warmth. He walked past a row of Fanged Geraniums, all of which leered at him, emitting small growls and hisses. He ducked a particularly energetic Venomous Tentacula, pushed past some herb plants and headed straight for the door to the castle.

***

It had been a week since Kakashi last talked to Obito on the snowy grounds. Since then, Obito hadn’t pestered Kakashi, but instead, kept a sullen, contemplative mood whenever he was around. He still gazed at the Ravenclaw at times, looking as though he wasn’t aware that he was doing so.

Kakashi was getting busier as the holidays approached, for the teachers wanted to finish their term’s schedule and often rushed them through the chapters, unloading a greater homework-load than ever on them. Not to mention, they had finally entered game season and were practicing five days a week to prepare for their first match against the Gryffindors.

Kakashi was relatively pleased with his progress both on the pitch and in his academics, for he could see considerable improvements in both areas. It would be untrue to say that he wasn’t stressed and didn’t feel like ripping all his hair out, but Kakashi managed to push through, paying his full attention in class even though he felt like he could drop dead from exhaustion at any moment – in which case, he would probably get back up as a ghost and resume taking down his notes. He would then wolf down his dinner hurriedly before going for his nightly Quidditch practice, training in the freezing cold, and afterwards, he would stay up till three in the morning, trying to complete all his assignments.

Kakashi often found himself waking up the next morning in the common room, face stuck to his parchment and nose stained with ink. There wasn’t a minute passed when he didn’t yawn due his fatigue and he was secretly glad it was match day when it finally arrived, for that meant no more nightly trainings till after the holidays and he could finally sleep before twelve. Still, Kakashi was finding it hard to stomach much of his breakfast in the morning of his first Quidditch match of the year. He plucked off small pieces of his bread before forcing himself to swallow them dry. He supposed it was a good thing he didn’t have much of an appetite, for that meant he wouldn’t get nauseous up in the air too quickly.

Tenzo was having a harder time than him calming down his nerves. He was staring at the food in front of him, face ashen and eyes bulging, looking as though he would puke if so much as a piece of toast touched his lips. Not wanting the Seeker to jeopardise his health, Kakashi pushed a small bowl of chicken porridge towards him. Tenzo shook his head, but Kakashi told him firmly to eat a mouthful at least. Tenzo finally relented.

A flurry of owls entered the Great Hall and Kakashi looked up, searching for his daily subscription to the Daily Prophet. A familiar tawny owl landed in front of him, carrying the Prophet with it, and he gently untangled it from its leg. He was unrolling his newspaper when another owl, a barn owl, hopped to a landing in front of him. Kakashi recognised it as one of the school’s owls and was puzzled – who from Hogwarts would be sending him mail? Kakashi took the parcel from the owl, feeling the light weight in his hand.

Rin shot him a curious glance.

Putting his Daily Prophet aside, Kakashi carefully ripped the parcel open. A medium-sized packet of Fizzing Whizbees fell onto his lap, followed by a note. Kakashi blinked, taking the note and reading it:

_All the best for the match later. Here’s something to cheer you up because you’ve been looking quite peaky lately. I would advise you not to eat them before your match though, unless you don’t feel like needing the help of a broomstick to fly. Be grateful this made it to you; I almost couldn’t stop myself from eating them up._

-O.

Kakashi reread the letter several times, before turning the packet over in his hands and staring at it in awe. He couldn’t have poisoned them, could he? he pondered. There was no doubt who’d sent him this, because for one, he recognised the small, tidy handwriting, and secondly, he couldn’t think of anyone else who would bother sending him a good luck message and a packet of sweets, and whose name started with ‘O’. To say the least, Kakashi was touched, even though he wasn’t a big fan of sweets. It was the thought that counted, right?

He looked over at the Slytherin table, immediately catching Obito’s eye. The Slytherin had been glancing over at him rather apprehensively ever since the post-owl dropped the package right in front of him. Kakashi allowed a small, upward curve of his lips as a ‘Thank you’ before averting his gaze and returning to his breakfast.

Rin had stolen the Daily Prophet from him and was now reading the front page.

“There’s been a muggle death in a nearby village!” Rin exclaimed suddenly, her eyes narrowing as she scrutinised the fine print. “A Lethifold killed him.”

Kakashi looked up in shock and Tenzo gave her a puzzled look. “What’s a Lethifold?” he asked.

“It’s a Dark creature,” explained Rin. “A very dangerous one. It resembles a black cloak and it feeds on human flesh. It’s almost impossible to find evidence for a Lethifold-related death because it never leaves any traces behind. According to this article, the wife of the victim had secretly installed a–” She squinted. “–sur…vei…llance camera – whatever that is – in their bedroom, for she suspected her husband was cheating on her and was secretly sneaking out at night. He did get up around midnight, but the Lethifold, which was hiding underneath the bed, came out and engulfed him. The muggle woman was very shocked and showed the tape to the police. Luckily, a wizard overheard them and obliviated the lot before taking the tape and handing it over to the Ministry. They are now doing a full-scale search of the area.”

“But, aren’t Lethifolds supposed to be tropical creatures?” Kakashi frowned, absentmindedly peeling his bread pieces into smaller crumbs. “What’s it doing here in the middle of winter?”

“That’s what’s disconcerting them the most,” said Rin, folding the Prophet and placing it down next to her plate. “It almost looks like someone has deliberately brought it here.”

Kakashi looked down at his plate uneasily, staring at the messy pieces of bread. He recalled his frightful meeting with Orochimaru, who had told him that there was a Lethifold in the forest. He hadn’t taken him seriously, for he believed the older man was talking nonsense as usual, but now, he was beginning to wonder if he should probably alert a teacher.

A hand rested on his shoulder and he looked up to see Konan smiling grimly down at them. “Ready, guys?” she said.

“I’m ready,” Rin answered at once, getting up from her seat. “Let’s kick some Gryffindor ass.”

“Great. I’ll see you on the pitch then.” She left.

Kakashi suddenly felt a flurry of butterflies attacking his stomach. With the recent news about the muggle’s death preoccupying his mind, he had completely forgotten about the match. The nervousness was full-blown now, and he was beginning to wish he hadn’t stuffed himself with so much bread, for he could feel it rising back up his oesophagus. He reached for some pumpkin juice to wash it down.

He got up, before looking down at Tenzo, who had become as still as a gargoyle.

Rin clapped a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. “C’mon, loosen up,” she said brightly. “The worst that can happen to you is getting your skull cracked open by a Bludger and falling fifty feet to the ground.”

Tenzo’s pale face turned a light shade of green.

Kakashi shot a warning look at Rin and shook his head slightly. “Tenzo,” he said gently, placing both hands on the table as he leant in to the boy. “Don’t worry so much. You’ll do fine – you’re a really good Seeker. All you have to do is to believe in yourself.”

Tenzo glanced up at Kakashi and the older boy gave him an encouraging smile. Tenzo set his lips into a firm line, before nodding resolutely.

“I can do this,” he said in a voice that clearly showed he was trying to convince himself.

“You can do this,” smiled Kakashi.

The boy stood up, squared his shoulders and marched out of the Great Hall. Kakashi and Rin followed him and they left the Great Hall together.

Stepping out of the Entrance Hall, they walked down to the pitch, accompanied by a few early birds. Those from Ravenclaw wished them good luck, while a few Slytherins shouted at them, telling them they wanted to see the Gryffindors get bludgered up. Their hatred for the Gryffindors was strong.

The sky was bright and clear and it was surprisingly one of those warmer winter days. There was no wind or snow, so the air stood still and crisp, making it an ideal flying condition. They entered the locker room, pulling on their Quidditch robes and putting on their gear before joining the rest of the team for a last-minute pep talk.

“Alright, team,” said Konan, who had thinned her lips into a determined line and was clutching her broomstick as though it were a soldier’s weapon. “Listen up, we can win this match and I’m not just saying this to boost your spirits up or whatever, but I seriously think our team has one of the best players this year and we’ve been training long and hard for this match. I thank you all for coming down for each and every practice without complaining, training into the wee hours of the night in the harsh weather. You have trained hard, so let’s not put that into waste and play our best out there. You hear me?”

“Yes,” the Ravenclaws said collectively.

Konan smiled, a genuine warm one, and said, “Now remember, steer clear of their Beaters’ paths, especially Iruka. Kakashi, Kurenai and I will try our best to score as many points as we can. Tenzo, once you see the Snitch, do not hesitate, and do not worry about knocking Yuugao off her broom. She may seem small and light, but she’s quick and skilful. Shove her out of the way if you have to.”

Tenzo nodded.

“Alright then, let’s not waste any more time. Let’s go.” Konan turned and walked out of the locker room. The rest of the team followed in a neat file.

The Ravenclaws waited behind the stands. They gave each other encouraging smiles and once the referee blew her whistle, entered the pitch. Loud cheers emanated from the stands, which were overpowered by a voice that was shouting the Ravenclaw team members’ names.

“We have the Ravenclaw Quidditch team heading in to our left, led by Captain and Chaser, Konan, followed by Chasers Hatake Kakashi and Yuuhi Kurenai, Beaters Yahiko and Uzumaki Nagato, Keeper Nohara Rin and lastly, Seeker Yamato Tenzo,” Gai, a fourth-year Gryffindor, announced into the magically enhanced microphone he was holding.

Kakashi looked around the stadium; the stands were draped in red and blue banners in alternate sections. He smiled at the mass of blue-clad supporters, which were waving blue flags carrying the Ravenclaw crest and cheering noisily for their house.

“To our right, we have the Gryffindor team, led by Captain and Keeper, Shiranui Genma, followed by Chasers Uchiha Shisui, Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba, Beaters Hagane Kotetsu and Umino Iruka and Seeker Uzuki Yuugao.”

Loud cheers erupted from the Gryffindor side. Kakashi squinted and saw that most of them were wearing what looked like a stuffed lion perched on their hats. He found the sight quite funny.

“Players, please mount your brooms,” said the referee, Miss Uzumaki Kushina, a petite and beautiful instructor with long, red hair. “In the air.”

They ascended. Kakashi’s heart was thumping loudly in his chest and the reverberations echoed in his ears. He felt thrilled, excited and very nervous.

“Miss Kushina has released the Quaffle, followed by the Golden Snitch. The capture of the Snitch by either of the Seekers ends the game and gets their team an extra one-hundred and fifty points,” said Gai. “Up go the Bludgers, and Miss Kushina has blown the whistle. The game begins.”

At the sound of the shrill whistle, the players broke formation. The Quaffle, which was in Ravenclaw’s possession, was passed from Konan to Kurenai, who sped along the centre of the pitch. Kakashi zoomed closely behind her and when two red-uniformed players flanked her sides, dropped beneath her and caught the Quaffle from her hands. He skimmed the ground, shooting up when the third Gryffindor player approached him from the front. Kakashi swerved and eyed the goalposts for a brief moment before throwing the Quaffle in. Genma failed to reach the third post in time and Ravenclaw scored.

Kakashi broke into a smile as the crowd of Ravenclaws screamed and cheered.

“Ten points to Ravenclaw, scored by Kakashi!”

The Quaffle was in the Gryffindor team’s possession now.

“The Quaffle is in Aoba’s hands. Ravenclaw’s Kurenai tries to stop him. She fails and Aoba passes the Quaffle over to Shizune, who speeds along the pitch. Come on, Shizune… No! She’s intercepted by Konan, who heads back to the other side of the pitch.”

Kakashi gripped his broom handle tightly as Konan approached him. She tossed him the Quaffle and he caught it, before turning around and speeding towards the goalposts. There were no players around and Kakashi could see Genma hovering in front of the middle goalpost. He made a quick decision and shot to his left, catching Genma by surprise.

“Ravenclaw scores! Another ten points from Kakashi.”

The blue crowd was screaming wildly now. They’d never led Gryffindor in a match before. Kakashi spun back, exuberant and feeling rather proud of the Chasers’ great teamwork.

“Gryffindor in possession again. Shisui, Shizune, Shisui again, Shizune, Aoba…”

The Gryffindor players were getting more aggressive, now that Ravenclaw proved to be a tough opponent. Their Chasers juggled the Quaffle between them, making it impossible for the Ravenclaw team to intercept them.

“The Quaffle is back with Shizune and she’s speeding towards the Ravenclaw goalposts. Will she be able to score? Will Rin be able to save the– Oh no!”

Kakashi whipped his head round as the Gryffindor crowd groaned together.

“Ravenclaw Beater Nagato has hit the Bludger at Shizune. The Quaffle is dropped. Are you okay, Shizune?!”

“Yeah, Nagato!” Kakashi yelled at the grinning sixth-year, who was waving his bat in the air in response to the cheers from the Ravenclaws.

“The Quaffle is picked up by Konan, who makes a long shot and passes it to Kurenai– Seriously, are you okay, Shizune?”

A whistle was sounded and the players halted mid-air. Miss Kushina was rushing over to a hunched Shizune on her broomstick. Kakashi peered at Shizune’s face, which seemed to have a long slick of blood trailing down her nose and chin. Miss Kushina gently escorted her to the ground.

“Just a broken nose, people,” Gai assured as the Gryffindors roared in protest. “She’ll be fine with a simple spell; she’ll have her perfect nose back. In the meantime, Gryffindor’s reserve player, Namiashi Raido, has taken her place.”

It was a long thirty minutes of play. The Gryffindor Captain made a few spectacular saves, but Ravenclaw’s offense was strong, and with the Chasers’ excellent teamwork, he didn’t stand a chance. They reached the one-hundred mark and Konan called for a time-out.

She beckoned the Ravenclaws over.

“Well done,” she said. “We’re leading them one-hundred to fifty. Tenzo, any sign of the Snitch?”

Tenzo shook his head. “I’ve been scanning all corners of the stadium. There’s no sign of it.”

“Well, keep looking,” said Konan. “We’re in the lead, definitely, but Gryffindor can still win if they catch the Snitch. Let’s get back now, shall we?”

The Ravenclaws split ways.

“The game resumes. The Quaffle is in Gryffindor’s possession. Shisui speeds towards the goalposts. He shoots… but Rin dives and blocks the Quaffle at the last second. Good one there.”

“Go, go, Ravenclaw! Go, go, Ravenclaw!” A chant was rising from the stands.

Kakashi felt invigorated as the chant grew louder and reverberated throughout the stadium. A number of Slytherins had joined in on the chant, for they were hoping for a Gryffindor defeat. The cheer was deafening and Kakashi chased after the Quaffle with new strength.

Fifteen minutes later, Ravenclaw had scored ten more goals and Gryffindor, one more. The score was two-hundred to sixty in Ravenclaw’s favour.

Just two more goals, thought Kakashi. Then we don’t have to worry much about the Gryffindor Seeker catching the Snitch.

“The Quaffle is in Raido’s possession. He manoeuvres past both Konan and Kurenai and passes it to Shisui. Kakashi tries to block him. The pair struggles and Kakashi makes to grab the Quaffle but fails. Shisui tosses it to Aoba, who– oh, but wait!”

A loud, deafening uproar, the loudest that was ever heard during the match, sounded and Kakashi whipped around, as did all the other players. Tenzo was pelting at high-speed towards the ground, Yuugao right on his tail. Kakashi could see that the Seekers’ faces were screwed up in immense concentration as they raced for the Snitch at break-neck speed. He saw the Snitch hovering at the base of the Gryffindor goalposts, flitting around above the short grass. Kakashi’s heart was in his mouth and he watched with bated breath as Tenzo pushed the handle of his Firebolt down ever so slightly and gained himself an increasing gap between him and Yuugao. He stretched out his arm, fingers spread out, and aimed for the Snitch. He was thirty feet away… twenty… Yuugao was half a body behind him now.

Suddenly, a collective gasp sounded and Kakashi saw it happen. A Bludger hit the side of Tenzo’s head full on and Kakashi could hear a loud whack as the young Seeker was jerked sideways off his broom and fell the remaining ten feet to the ground. Yuugao raced past him and grabbed the Snitch, pulling her broom level with the ground and held her arm up, face jubilant.

“Umino Iruka sends a Bludger at Tenzo at the last moment, knocking the Ravenclaw Seeker to the ground. Yuugao catches the Snitch – Gryffindor wins Ravenclaw two-hundred and ten to two-hundred!”

The Gryffindors went wild with ecstasy as they jumped up from their seats. Genma pumped his fist in the air and joined his teammates in celebration. Amidst the flurry and chaos around him, Kakashi weaved past the blue and red players, shoving everyone aside as he rushed towards Tenzo. Konan was already on the ground, broomstick still between her legs as she turned Tenzo over.

“I think he’s out cold,” she told Kakashi worryingly.

He crouched down next to Tenzo and scanned his face in concern. The Ravenclaw Seeker’s eyes were closed.

“Out of my way! Move it!”

Someone shoved Kakashi aside and he stumbled to the ground. Miss Kushina pointed her wand at Tenzo and transferred him onto a levitating stretcher. With her wand out in front of her, she hurried Tenzo up to the hospital wing. The Ravenclaw team followed closely behind her.

Madam Terumi Mei laid him down on a bed. Tenzo’s navy blue Quidditch robes fell off the edge of the bed.

Konan leant his Firebolt next to his bedside table.

“Is he going to be okay?” asked Rin in concern.

Madam Mei examined him. “He’s just knocked out. I can fix his cracked skull with a simple spell. He’ll be alright once he wakes up,” she said briskly. “Now move aside, I need to get him out of his Quidditch robes.” She drew a curtain around the bed.

The Ravenclaw team huddled around two empty beds miserably, thinking about their loss.

“We did well,” Konan tried to cheer her team up. “It was unfortunate that Bludger got to Tenzo, but I’m very proud of how well all of you played today. I’ve never seen a team as united as this one. Let’s try harder for our next match. We only lost to the Gryffindor team by ten points. We can still put ourselves in the lead.”

The Ravenclaws nodded solemnly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the kudos and comments! Thank you so much for letting me know that you enjoyed this story with such kind words :’) It really means a lot! They gave me motivation when I was contemplating continuing this story <3 There isn’t much ObiKaka in this chapter but it’s important to the plot. I’m working on the next chapter so it shouldn’t take too long. Please look forward to it!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite his stuck-up attitude, Kakashi couldn't help but find the Slytherin Chaser attractive, and he wanted to get into his pants as much as he wanted to shove a broomstick down his throat.

The door to the hospital wing opened and two Gryffindor players entered. Kakashi saw that they were still decked out in their red Quidditch robes and were carrying their broomsticks.

Genma walked straight towards Konan and Iruka followed behind, a worried look on the younger Gryffindor’s face.

“I’m sorry about your Seeker,” Genma told Konan as he glanced towards the curtained bed.

“He’ll be fine. Thanks for coming,” Konan smiled. “How’s Shizune?”

“They fixed her with a simple spell and she was discharged soon after,” replied Genma.

“That’s good to hear. Congratulations on the win, by the way,” said Konan. “And you don’t have to stay. Tenzo just has a cracked skull – nothing Madam Mei can’t fix.”

Genma nodded. “Yeah, but he wants to stay.” He gestured at a concerned-looking Iruka.

“Hey, it isn’t your fault.” Konan gave another small smile. “You were just doing your job. If anything, I need to train Tenzo better on how to avoid Bludgers.”

“I still feel bad,” Iruka said quietly.

Madam Mei pulled the curtains apart again. Tenzo was now dressed in a hospital gown and the matron had pulled the blankets up to his chest. His head was bandaged, such that he looked like a rather misshapen egg. Kakashi supposed she must have fixed his bones already. Pointing her wand at Tenzo, she muttered, “Rennervate.”

Tenzo’s eyes fluttered open and he winced immediately after, hand reaching for his head.

“Easy now,” Madam Mei told Tenzo gently. “You were shaken up quite badly. I’ll need you to stay in bed for a day or two,” she added before leaving the student’s bed.

Tenzo looked over to his teammates, who got up and crowded around him.

“How are you feeling, Tenzo?” asked Konan.

“I’m fine,” he replied, before gently placing a hand at the side of his head. “I have a major headache, though.”

“Take care of yourself,” mumbled Kakashi, who was right beside his bed. “We don’t want you getting hurt again.”

Tenzo smiled at him.

A low cough sounded and all the Ravenclaws turned towards the two Gryffindors standing awkwardly at the foot of the bed. Tenzo looked thoroughly surprised to see them there.

“I, er… want to apologise,” said Iruka, his eyes downcast. “I didn’t mean to knock you unconscious.”

Tenzo blinked, still staring at Iruka in surprise.

“I’m really sorry…” Iruka trailed off into a miserable silence.

Tenzo blinked a couple more times before letting a small smile appear on his face. “Thanks for coming all the way here. I didn’t expect you to do that,” he said, eyes curiously fixed on the doleful Gryffindor.

Genma clapped a hand on Iruka’s shoulder. “He’s always been a kind kid with a heart of gold.”

“I can see that.” Iruka looked up at Tenzo, who smiled. “It’s no problem, though, these things happen and besides, you were supposed to knock me off my broom.” He laughed.

Iruka smiled back uncertainly.

“Alright, we need to get back and change.” Genma steered Iruka away with his arm around his shoulders. He nodded at Konan and winked surreptitiously at Rin, before leaving the hospital wing together with Iruka. Iruka looked back over his shoulder as he was about to exit to shoot Tenzo another glance.

Kakashi looked over at Rin and saw her secretly blowing a kiss to the Gryffindor Captain. He chuckled and shook his head at his friend’s antics.

He was about to leave the hospital wing with his teammates, when a hand slipped into his own. He looked down to see that Tenzo was holding him back and he was looking rather sheepish, biting his lip and flushing a little.

“Do you mind staying back for a bit?” he asked tentatively.

“Of course not,” said Kakashi at once as he waved Rin and the others on and pulled out a chair, sitting at Tenzo’s bedside.

They fell quiet for a while, Tenzo shyly staring up at Kakashi, who was observing the bandages wrapped carefully around his head.

Kakashi reached out a hand and gently touched them, flinching a little when he recalled the loud whacking sound of the Bludger against his skull. “Are you sure you’re okay? It looked like a pretty nasty hit,” he said sympathetically.

“I’m fine. Madam Mei fixed me up really good. She’s very skillful,” Tenzo returned softly. He reached up and took Kakashi’s hand away from his bandaged head, his touch lingering on the older Ravenclaw’s skin far more than was necessary.

Kakashi pulled his hand away, feeling slightly awkward at the piercing gaze the younger boy was giving him. “So, you wanted to talk to me about something?”

“Yes,” said Tenzo hesitantly, his gaze dropping to his lap. “Well, I… I’ve been thinking about this. I don’t know how, or when it started, but I just realised it one day.” He brought his gaze up to find Kakashi’s. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down before he reached out and took Kakashi’s hand. Kakashi stared at him, bewildered. “Kakashi, I–”

The door to the hospital wing opened and Obito strolled in. He caught sight of Kakashi sitting next to Tenzo’s bed and walked over to him, hands in his trouser pockets. “Why are you still up here?” he asked. “I’ve been looking for you since the match ended. I saw the Ravenclaw team coming down from the hospital wing so I thought you were with them, but they told me you were still upstairs with…” Obito’s voice trailed off as he saw Kakashi’s hand in Tenzo’s.

There was a long pause before Kakashi retracted his hand quickly. Obito blinked a few times before looking away.

“Obito…” Kakashi started uncertainly, though he didn’t know how to continue.

“I’ll just… wait outside the hospital wing.”

“Wait, Obito!” Kakashi called out uneasily.

“Let him go,” said Tenzo in an uncharacteristically annoyed voice. “He’s too used to waiting for you anyway.”

Obito spun in his tracks, fixing a furious glare at Tenzo. “Now wait just one moment,” he said loudly.

“When are you going to tell him that you like him?” Tenzo asked coldly.

Obito stared back in an equally frosty manner. “I already did.” he scoffed.

Tenzo’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “You did?”

“Yes, I did,” Obito said, his glare unbearably icy. Tilting his chin up, his lips curling into a sneer, he continued, “Unlike someone.”

Tenzo’s eyes narrowed; Kakashi could detect a quiver of fright in them. “Don’t you dare.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Kakashi questioned, his eyes on a suddenly nervous-looking Tenzo.

Obito rolled his eyes and turned to Kakashi. “It’s so obvious, I’m surprised you don’t know, Kakashi.” Turning his gaze back to Tenzo and giving him a really nasty look, Obito said, “Tenzo likes you.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Tenzo was quick to rebut.

Obito snorted. “You’re seriously going to try that?”

Tenzo glared at him. “Get out of this room. You’re not welcome here,” he snarled.

Kakashi stared at Tenzo in slight surprise, not accustomed to seeing the younger boy being impolite.

“Fine,” said Obito, a look of disdain on his face. “Have it your way then. Good luck trying to explain to him why you’ve been looking at him like you’ve drunk an entire cauldron of Amortentia.”

“Oh, go eat some owl droppings,” Tenzo snapped as Obito turned and sauntered out of the hospital wing. “I’d like to shove a Bludger up his ass,” muttered Tenzo when the Slytherin had left.

Kakashi stared at Tenzo in bewilderment, wondering if the younger wizard’s brain had been tampered by the Bludger.

The third-year caught Kakashi staring at him and blushed before saying, “Sorry. He just gets on my nerves.”

The two remained silent. Kakashi looked out of the window, noticing how the frosty air outside caused a semi-translucent mist to form on the glass. The hospital wing was well-heated, but it felt strangely cold after that small rift between Tenzo and Obito. Suddenly remembering that Tenzo was about to say something before the Slytherin barged in, he turned to the younger boy, whose eyes flitted away hastily. “You wanted to tell me something?” Kakashi asked, choosing to ignore the light pink dusting the younger boy’s cheeks.

Tenzo bit his lip, a look of conflict clearly on his face. He let out a deep sigh before raising his gaze to meet Kakashi’s. “He’s right,” he said, almost dejectedly.

“Who’s right?” Kakashi asked, though he was half-certain he knew what Tenzo was talking about.

“Obito.” Tenzo’s voice had turned small. “I… I really like you.”

Kakashi remained silent for a long time as he stared at Tenzo. There was a look of uncertainty in the younger’s dark orbs, as well as a dim glow of despair, as though he already knew what Kakashi was going to say.

“I’m sorry, Tenzo,” Kakashi said. “You know I only see you as a friend.”

“We can give it a try,” pleaded Tenzo, all forms of self-control vanishing as he grasped Kakashi’s hand. His bottom lip quivered and Kakashi had never felt so upset for someone.

“I’m really sorry.”

Tenzo stared into Kakashi’s eyes for a while longer, and Kakashi was about to drop his gaze from the pressure of the burning despair in the younger’s eyes, when Tenzo let go of his hand with a sigh and looked down, the slump of his shoulders and the bend of his neck showing his dejection.

Kakashi didn’t know what to say to the younger Ravenclaw, and he wondered if his presence there was making things worse for Tenzo. “I… er… have to change out of my Quidditch robes,” he said awkwardly.

Tenzo nodded silently.

“You’ll be alright on your own?”

He nodded again.

Kakashi bit his lip. What was he to do in this situation? “I’ll come and visit you tomorrow,” he said feebly.

“Yeah.” Tenzo tried a smile.

With another concerned look shot in his direction, Kakashi left the hospital wing. His heart felt slightly heavy as he recalled the sorely upset look in his friend’s eyes. He barely registered the fact that Obito was nowhere within sight in the deserted first floor corridor, so he probably decided not to wait for him, and returned to thinking up ways on how he could go about handling the situation with Tenzo.

***

Mail arrived halfway through breakfast and two owls landed in front of Kakashi and Rin. Kakashi took his Daily Prophet from the tawny owl. He recognised the second owl as his family’s.

“Of course,” he mumbled to himself as he took the letter from the owl, patting it fondly before letting it drink from his goblet.

His mother would have heard of the outcome of their match by now, having established a very close friendship with the school’s flying instructor, and would be dying to hear about the Ravenclaws' first neck-and-neck match with the Gryffindors. He slipped the letter into his robes pocket – he’d read it later when he was in his dormitory.

Kakashi glanced at the huge clock that was mounted at the front of the Great Hall and saw that he only had fifteen minutes before his first class. Not wanting to go through an entire morning of classes with an empty stomach, Kakashi quickly swallowed down his breakfast.

He took out his timetable once he was done eating and scanned the top portion of his Monday schedule.

“I can’t believe it! I’m spending two whole periods with the Slytherins!” He stared at his timetable in disbelief. “Double Charms, followed by Care of Magical Creatures.”

Rin gave him a light grimace. “Good luck,” she said.

Once the bell rang, they headed to their respective classes. Kakashi dragged himself all the way to his Study of Ancient Runes classroom, where he sat down nervously at the back of the class, dreading the start of the lesson. He had a test that day and he wasn’t sure he’d finished studying for it. Sure, he could maybe scrape an Exceeds Expectations, but he wasn’t sure it’d sit well with the cranky Ancient Runes professor, especially when most of the Ravenclaws would be easily clinching Outstandings.

The door opened with a bang and Professor Nara marched in, his face lined with frown wrinkles as he swept a stony glance across the quiet classroom.

“Put your wands away and take out your quills and parchment. I will be conducting a test today,” the professor said as he slammed his books down onto his desk with a loud bang.

There was no movement; everyone was prepared. Professor Nara waved his wand curtly, as a standard procedure to see if anyone was cheating. Nothing happened and he distributed the test papers. The slips of parchment fell swiftly off the stacks as they hovered down the rows of tables and once the last test paper floated neatly down on Kakashi’s table, Professor Nara said, “The duration of this test is fifty minutes. You may begin.”

Kakashi stared down at the parchment filled with rune scriptures, skimming through them briefly before he began on his translations. Reading the runes was very easy and the translations came naturally to Kakashi. His hand whizzed across the parchment, the ink from his quill blotting his words as he tried to keep up with his racing mind. Once he was done with the translations, he moved on to the interpretations. This portion was considerably harder, for the scriptures operated using a different system and their meanings weren’t always literal. Kakashi struggled a fair bit, trying to figure out if ‘Zeibok’ was used as its literal translation of ‘unicorn’, or if it was used to symbolise purity and innocence. There were a few uncertain parts in Kakashi’s essay and hence, when the scripts were summoned back to Professor Nara, he couldn’t help but feel as though he’d missed out on his ‘O’ again. Runes was his favourite subject, for he really did find it quite fascinating, but it was also a tough subject, making it harder to obtain top marks as compared to his other subjects.

Kakashi made his way to the Charms classroom, still wondering about that blasted ‘Zeibok’ and what it really meant. He’d completely forgotten that he was sharing this class with the Slytherins and it wasn’t until he saw the green and silver striped ties did he remember with a groan, that he was going to have to tolerate their presence for the next one-hundred and fifty minutes. He blinked as a black-haired Slytherin made his way over to him, face pulled up into a half-smirk, hands thrust into trouser pockets and robes flung open to reveal his messy uniform.

“Good morning,” Obito said.

Kakashi raised his eyebrows at the handsome Slytherin and tried not to think about how good he looked even when he was clearly offending the dress code. He did not provide a greeting in response. Kakashi sat near a tall window – he quite liked viewing the winter scenery – and watched as Obito tentatively sat down beside Kakashi, eyes cautiously trained on him as though expecting him to get annoyed and attempt to chase him away like he always did. Kakashi did no such thing and Obito relaxed slightly after a while.

It was practical Charms and hence, Professor Akimichi sat down at his desk, humming a cheery tune as he read the Quibbler while his students shouted spells at the cushions in front of them, attempting to banish them to the professor’s desk. It was the perfect atmosphere to hold a lengthy conversation and sure enough, the classroom buzzed with chatter a few minutes into the lesson. Professor Akimichi appeared to be too engrossed in his magazine to notice.

“Depulso!” exclaimed Kakashi, as he pointed his wand at the cushion in front of him, making it fly across the room and land neatly on the professor’s desk, building up the tower of cushions that was slowly obscuring their teacher.

“You know, I had a really bad start to this day,” Obito said as he pointed his wand at his own cushion, muttering the incantation and letting it fly and land atop Kakashi’s cushion. “Divination was a pain in the ass – Professor Yamanaka was being a nightmare. I never liked that subject.”

“Why did you take that subject then?” Kakashi asked. “Accio.” His cushion came back to him.

“I didn’t have a choice. Arithmancy and Ancient Runes seemed like such boring subjects, and Muggle Studies was a definite no.” Obito grimaced.

“I forgot you Slytherins have something against muggles, even if I don’t know what that is,” muttered Kakashi.

“Wasn’t your mother in Slytherin?” Obito asked.

“Yeah.”

Kakashi didn’t ask him how he knew. The Slytherin house was basically a cult of pure-bloods, who seemed to know each other as though they were all part of some elite society. The Uchihas were one of the oldest wizarding families, and just like Obito, most of them were Slytherins. In fact, amongst all the students currently attending Hogwarts, there were only two Uchihas who weren’t in the Slytherin house; Uchiha Shisui, a third-year Gryffindor, and Uchiha Itachi; a first-year Ravenclaw.

“You should know then, why we aren’t very fond of muggles,” Obito continued.

“I’m afraid not,” replied Kakashi. “Besides, I’m pretty sure she’s muggle-friendly, else she wouldn’t have married a muggle-born.”

Obito turned to him in shock. “Your dad’s a Mud– sorry, a muggle-born?” he corrected hastily when Kakashi shot him a dangerous look.

“Have you heard of another Hatake family in the wizarding world aside from mine?” Kakashi said coldly.

Obito pursed his lip, but didn’t say anything more on that topic. “So anyway, the professor was telling us to gaze into crystal balls. He looked so happy about the fact that we were finally doing crystal balls so he brewed some rose olive oil shit and it made me feel really sleepy, so I dozed off. I started dreaming about something and Inoichi woke me up with that wide fake smile he always wears whenever he wants to look like he’s not pissed, but he actually is. He then asked me what I saw in my crystal ball – I don’t think he expected me to see anything since I was caught sleeping. I was still groggy with that heavy scent he drugged us with, so I said you.”

“Me?” said a confused Kakashi. “Why me?”

“Because I dreamt of you,” Obito returned, looking slightly embarrassed, though he shrugged nonchalantly. “And I couldn’t really tell if I saw your face in the glass ball or in my dreams, so I just said you.”

“…And what does that have to do with you having a bad lesson?” Kakashi wondered if the other was implying that dreaming about him was a horrible thing.

“Inoichi gave me extra homework,” Obito muttered darkly. “Because we were supposed to be looking into our future and according to him, I wasn’t paying attention because there was no way you’d be my future – as in, us being together – because he said you hated my guts. He told me to improve on my lying.” He gave a bitter laugh.

“Wow,” murmured Kakashi. “Even the teachers know that.”

Obito gave another laugh, though it sounded hollow. “So, how was Runes for you?” he asked as he sent his summoned cushion back onto the pile. Kakashi followed suit.

“Don’t talk to me about it,” Kakashi groaned.

“Why not?”

“Because I screwed up my test,” Kakashi sighed. “I’ve been working hard to get that ‘O’, but because of that stupid Zeibok, I’m most probably stuck with an ‘E’.”

“Zei– what?”

“Zeibok. It means unicorn. Or, at least, that’s its literal meaning. Does it even have a figurative meaning? I don’t know.” Kakashi clutched his hair as he started twirling his wand around with his fingers, causing it to emit a flicker of red sparks.

“Hey, hey.” Obito placed a hand on Kakashi’s wrist, preventing him from potentially gouging a classmate’s eye out or setting Professor Akimichi’s robes on fire. “Relax. I’m sure one mistake won’t affect your marks too bad.”

“I made several,” Kakashi said glumly.

“Well, an ‘E’ is still very good. Heck, I can’t even reach an ‘E’ for half of my subjects.”

“Thanks for that blatant lie,” said Kakashi, who was fully aware that the Slytherin wasn’t as bad at his subjects as he made himself out to be.

Obito smiled at him and he smiled back. He was suddenly aware that Obito’s fingers were still enclosed around his wrist. He pulled back slightly and Obito immediately withdrew his hand, bringing it up to scratch the back of his head awkwardly.

“Okay, well, let’s change the topic. It’s getting depressing talking about grades. What do you want to talk about?” Obito cast a sidelong glance in Kakashi’s direction.

Out of the blue, a question popped up in Kakashi’s mind. “I want to know something,” he said.

“Shoot,” Obito said.

“Why did you tell me Tenzo liked me? I mean, what was that all about? You guys were spitting fire at one another yesterday like you were sworn enemies,” Kakashi crossed his arms as he demanded. “He was about to confess to me.”

“Did he confess to you?” Obito whipped his head round to Kakashi so suddenly that his neck cracked.

“Yes,” replied Kakashi.

“What did you say?” Obito demanded.

Kakashi frowned. “You haven’t answered my question.”

Obito opened his mouth, before shutting it. He swallowed and swiped his dry lips with his tongue.

Kakashi raised his eyebrows pointedly.

“I was jealous,” Obito eventually said, his gaze flitting down after he said those words, as though he was embarrassed by it. “I don’t know, I just… it was strange, seeing you up there alone with him.”

Kakashi did not respond, though his body responded to the statement in weird ways. He felt a strange warmth in his chest and a sort of fluttery patter within his heart. The warmth spread to the tips of his fingers, giving them a light tingle and crawled up his face like a blush. He looked away from the awkward-looking, slightly flushing Slytherin.

They carried on with a light-hearted conversation throughout Charms, completely neglecting their cushions lying in front of them. Obito had cast the Muffliato charm in their professor’s direction, so that he wouldn’t question them about abandoning their practice to talk about which wizarding bands they liked, Quidditch, and what they were going to do for the holidays. Kakashi was surprised to find that Obito would be staying for Christmas, for the Slytherin usually headed back home for the holidays.

Kakashi justified his unproductive Charms lesson with the fact that he’d managed to get the Banishing charm right all five times he tried it. He supposed that was sufficient practice, seeing as some of his classmates struggled with their twenty-something attempts and only managed to send their cushions away once.

Obito and Kakashi walked out of the castle, together with their classmates, stepping onto the chilly grounds as they headed for their Care of Magical Creatures class. Kakashi sighed as his face took a sharp whip of cold air. The wind was nastily fierce that day and Kakashi wasn’t very thrilled to be out on the grounds in this weather, feeding whatever creatures they might be taught that day.

“Hurry up! Hurry up!” their Care of Magical Creatures teacher called out.

The class hurried over to Professor Jiraiya, who was bouncing on his toes, a wide, kind smile on his face as he waited for the fourth-years. He was standing right next to the gamekeeper hut, which Kakashi noticed, was now surrounded by an even greater number of ‘alarms’. The gamekeeper had strung a whole yard of string around his house, and had hung numerous bells at random intervals, making the whole premise look very odd.

They carefully stepped over the taut strings, not wanting to break the precariously placed arrangement, and approached Professor Jiraiya.

Kakashi could hear Obito mutter, “Madman,” under his breath.

“Alright, I’m going to bring you into the Forbidden forest today– not to worry, we’re just going to be at the boundaries,” the professor added when a few of their classmates exchanged slightly worried looks. “These creatures are very, very shy and thus, it’s best if we go see them in their natural habitat rather than bring them out into the open. Orochimaru will be helping me round up the blessing.”

“Blessing?” a Ravenclaw girl called out with an excited squeak. “A blessing of unicorns, you mean?”

This invited a rumble of excited murmurs. Professor Jiraiya merely smiled and he led the fourth-years into the forest. They walked for a couple of minutes, Professor Jiraiya occasionally shouting for them to stick close together. Obito and Kakashi huddled close together. Obito’s shoulder was practically touching Kakashi’s and Kakashi tried to busy his right hand with the straps of his bag because he often found that the light brushes of Obito’s hand against his made his head feel unbearably woozy.

They entered an open clearing of the forest, where the sparse branches of the trees let in thick streams of silver light that hit the snowy ground in large patches, making it sparkle. The class huddled around a huge fallen log, looking around at their surroundings in awe.

“You can bring them in, Orochimaru,” Professor Jiraiya called out into a dark gap between some trees that were directly opposite them.

The students watched the opening excitedly. They saw the shimmer first before anything else, and it was a mysterious white glow that seemed to glide smoothly past the darkness of the trees. A blessing of unicorns appeared, about half a dozen or so, followed closely by a scowling Orochimaru, who obviously did not like the fact that Professor Jiraiya was ordering him around. Obito gave off a light scoff as he stared coldly at the gamekeeper.

The unicorns were beautiful – their wispy, light tresses floated in the still air, emitting silver glitters all around them and their shimmery pure-white coat of hair stood out even against the snowy white ground. The snow seemed to become dull in comparison with these wondrous, pure creatures that illuminated everything in their path with every step they took. Everyone was staring at them, entranced by their beauty and Professor Jiraiya had to snap his fingers to bring their attention back to his.

“Unicorns are extremely shy creatures,” he said. “They trust females more than males, and hence, for this lesson, I will only be allowing the girls to step forward and pat them– only pat them. Do not pull their manes or touch the horns. For the boys, unfortunately, you will have to remain at a distance and observe.”

The boys seated themselves on the log while the girls scurried over to the unicorns. Kakashi sniffled as he felt the cold seeping into his body. He gripped his cloak tightly and tried to preserve as much body heat as he could. He wished he had bundled himself up with more clothes, but after yesterday’s sudden warm spell, he didn’t think it would return to an even colder winter than before. He felt movement beside him and looked to his right to see that Obito was taking off his scarf.

The Slytherin wrung the long piece of fabric around Kakashi’s neck and it took him a few seconds to realise what he was actually doing. Kakashi leant back so suddenly that the piece of cloth was yanked out of Obito’s hands.

Obito grasped the scarf ends again and said exasperatedly, “Hold still.” He pulled the scarf lightly and Kakashi’s face was brought up close to his. Obito’s fingers worked on the scarf, pulling it into a thick knot around Kakashi’s neck.

The latter was transfixed by the soft look on Slytherin’s face, at the way Obito’s eyes were lowered as he worked with the scarf, how his lashes could be seen from the top of his head and how a small, slight dent appeared in between his eyebrows as he concentrated on his task. The warm fingers patted the woollen scarf into place as the deep, onyx eyes shifted upwards to lock gazes with Kakashi.

Kakashi could feel his heart palpitating as he stared into the beautiful, dark eyes. He felt a strange pulsing heat erupt in his heart as the deep depths of the Slytherin’s eyes catapulted him into a disorienting mess. Obito’s lips were pulled up into a light smirk and he leant backwards. Suddenly, Kakashi was plunged back into the pressing cold.

“You should wear your scarf out next time,” Obito commented, as though he hadn’t uprooted Kakashi’s entire fucking world and made a mess out of his heart. “You don’t want to catch a cold.”

Kakashi nodded mutely, still trying to get his bearings back. He turned to the front and watched the girls fawning over the unicorns. Suddenly, they didn’t seem to be the most beautiful things around anymore. The small parts of his neck where Obito’s fingers had brushed against were burning, and it was weirdly contrasted with this cold, empty feeling Kakashi was getting from sitting much too far from Obito. They were only a foot apart, but the recent blaze Obito’s light touches had on his skin made him yearn for more – perhaps a hand on his, fingers running down his cheek, or a warm pair of lips against his own.

 _Fuck my entire life_ , Kakashi thought, thunderstruck, as a new realisation hit him.

Obito had resumed talking and Kakashi struggled to bring his attention back to the words the other was saying, for he was still miserably preoccupied with pitying himself over the fact that he might not hate the Slytherin as much as he thought. He gave short, one-word answers, though Obito didn’t seem to mind his sudden lack of response. The class ended with the boys having done nothing more than simply observe the girls playing with the unicorns. They headed back out of the Forbidden forest.

“I’m heading straight for lunch,” remarked Obito.

Kakashi nodded. “I’ll be going to the hospital wing first. You go ahead.”

“You’re seeing him again?” Obito huffed irritably.

Kakashi kept mum.

“Sorry,” Obito sighed. “He’s sick, you should go see him. I’ll see you in the Great Hall.”

He stalked off without another word. Kakashi made his way back to the castle, welcoming the warmth with such relief that he thought he could head up to his bed and hibernate there until winter was over. Instead, he forced himself to go to the hospital wing. It was still a cosy place, with its heated interior and the sight of the plush, comfortable beds, so Kakashi wasn’t particularly upset he was spending his time there.

There were only two admitted students: a Hufflepuff second-year and Tenzo, who was lying on the farthest bed. Someone was sitting at Tenzo’s bedside and Kakashi glanced curiously at him. He noted that the boy was a Gryffindor, judging by the deep red linings of his school robes. It appeared that Tenzo was having a rather cheery conversation with him. Not wanting to disturb their conversation, Kakashi hung around at the entrance, hesitating.

Tenzo looked up and caught sight of him lingering in the doorway. “Kakashi, you’re here,” he called out.

The boy sitting beside Tenzo’s bed looked back and Kakashi saw that it was that Gryffindor Beater, Iruka. He immediately got up and said, “I should go.”

“Thanks for coming,” Tenzo smiled at him.

Iruka flushed a little and returned a shy smile before he grabbed his bag and hurried out of the hospital wing.

Kakashi glanced after him curiously and turned back to Tenzo, giving him a questioning look.

“He came over to pass me my homework. Said he volunteered to do it for Rin,” Tenzo explained.

“He doesn’t share many classes with you,” said Kakashi as he took Iruka’s empty seat.

“Yeah, that’s why it’s so strange,” Tenzo frowned. “He couldn’t exactly tell me what the professors taught. Oh well, I guess I can always read up on this instead.” Tenzo indicated the stack of books on his lap glumly.

Kakashi looked down at the books before bringing his gaze up to Tenzo.

“How are you feeling?”

Tenzo looked at Kakashi and then quickly averted his eyes. Somehow, the gentle question managed to bring back all the awkwardness from the previous night. “Fine,” he mumbled. “I don’t feel any pain anymore. Madam Mei might discharge me tonight.”

Kakashi nodded. “That’s good to hear.”

They went silent for a while.

“That’s a Slytherin scarf,” Tenzo pointed out suddenly, his eyes trained on the long green and silver striped cloth that was wrapped around Kakashi’s neck.

“Oh, yeah,” Kakashi felt his cheeks heating up as he tore the scarf away from his neck. He didn’t need it anymore now that he was indoors, but he quite liked the warm, comfortable feeling it gave him. Also, it smelt very nice. “Obito lent it to me.” He flushed even harder, as though embarrassed to admit the little scene that took place. “I forgot my scarf.”

Tenzo was observing Kakashi with a queer look. He dropped his gaze to the woollen scarf, which was now lying limply at the edge of his bed. He asked in a soft voice, “Do you like Obito?”

The question caught Kakashi by surprise. His heart started sputtering on its own accord at the sound of the Slytherin’s name. Did he like him? Obito’s face appeared at the forefront of his mind, wearing that familiar, gentle smirk he’d grown to love seeing. Kakashi’s flesh heated at the memory of Obito’s gentle fingers brushing lightly against his skin, seemingly melting the snow around him and sending him into disarray. Did he like Obito?

“Yes,” Kakashi said softly and watched miserably as Tenzo’s face crumpled.

***

Ever since Kakashi admitted his feelings about Obito to Tenzo, he’d been feeling rather jittery. He tossed and turned in his bed the entire night, wondering if he’d just been confused about the whole situation. Though the fact that Obito kept invading his thoughts even as he forced himself to shut his mind and sleep, proved that he did indeed, have some feelings for the Slytherin.

Tenzo and Kakashi hadn’t conversed much after that affirmation, Tenzo just staring in front of him, unmoving, as though he’d been petrified by a Basilisk, and Kakashi just wondering in horror what in the world he’d just confessed. He’d made his escape not too long after, for he didn’t think he could bear seeing the younger Ravenclaw’s devastated face and he really did need some time to think about the whole ‘I like Obito’ thing.

Kakashi did think it out in the shower, blankly staring at the shower wall while the water splashed on his head. It took him forty minutes to arrive at the conclusion that maybe he did confess his true feelings after all and it sucked big time because Obito was a huge-ass jerk.

But was he? Kakashi couldn’t contemplate on the Slytherin’s actions, because by then, it had been forty minutes and Ebisu was already banging on the door, demanding he let the others have their turn. So Kakashi was forced to bring his thoughts to his bed, where he would replay that miserably magical scene out in the snow during Care of Magical Creatures and have his heart worked up again. Kakashi was upset by himself, for he always thought his attraction to the Slytherin was purely sexual, as was supported by his many sexual fantasies of the black-haired boy, but he didn’t think he’d be that emotionally attached to him as well.

And that sucked because Kakashi suddenly remembered that Obito had said that he liked him, so what the hell was he supposed to do now?

_“I like you.”_

His mind raced and his heart accelerated. Kakashi groaned out of embarrassment under the covers, trying to get the adrenaline out of his system and get some goddamn sleep. It came off sounding much louder than his previous ones and Hyuuga Tokuma’s muffled voice reached Kakashi’s ears, “Shut the fuck up, Kakashi, or I’ll jinx your lips together.”

Kakashi kept still. After a few more grumbles, his dormmate’s snores sounded again. Kakashi eventually fell asleep, waking up a few hours later to the hustle and bustle of his dormitory.

“Get up, you’ve been sleeping in very often lately.” Ebisu flung his bed curtains open. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, fine,” grumbled Kakashi as he squinted up at his dormmate and dragged himself out of bed.

Once he’d washed himself up and changed into his school robes, he followed his dormmates to the Great Hall. He immediately went over to where Rin was.

“They discharged Tenzo last night,” the girl said.

“I know,” replied Kakashi as he grabbed some toast.

Rin glanced towards the entrance. “He’s here,” she suddenly said and raised an arm to wave it in the air. “Tenzo!”

Kakashi turned just in time to see Tenzo giving him a glance and stalking away to sit at the other end of the Ravenclaw table with his classmates.

Rin’s hand dropped. “What’s wrong with him?” she asked, puzzled.

Kakashi did not answer, instead, he turned to his toast. He took a small bite.

“What did you do, Kakashi?” demanded Rin.

“I didn’t do anything!”

“He was glaring at you! You said something to cross him, I know you did.”

Kakashi glared at Rin before dropping his gaze and angrily taking another bite off his toast. “He confessed to me,” he eventually admitted.

Rin, who was drinking some pumpkin juice, nearly choked. “Tenzo? Confessed to you?” she turned to him, wide-eyed. “And what did you say?”

“I rejected him.” Kakashi’s gaze was still on his toast.

“What? Why?”

“Because I don’t like him that way,” Kakashi said simply.

Rin slapped his arm.

“Ow!” Kakashi uttered suddenly.

“What do you mean you don’t like him that way?” Rin protested.

Rubbing his arm, Kakashi said crossly, “I mean exactly what I said.”

“But he’s cute! And he seems to really care about you and put up with your weirdness,” Rin bemoaned.

“I just don’t see him that way,” Kakashi said. “I can’t tell him I like him when I don’t.”

Rin observed Kakashi for a while. “Then, do you like anyone?” she asked, her eyes carefully trained on his expression.

Kakashi brought his gaze back down.

“You do!” Rin gaped.

“Can you be quiet?” Kakashi hissed at his friend, when a few of the neighbouring Ravenclaws cast curious glances in their direction at Rin’s loud statement. “And what if I do?”

“Who is it?” Rin asked eagerly.

“I’m not going to tell you.”

“But why?” Rin said, flabbergasted. “Kakashi, I’m your closest friend.”

“Says the one who’s keeping her relationship with Genma from me,” said Kakashi bitterly, as he stabbed his toast violently with his fork.

Rin frowned at him. “I’m not hiding anything.”

“Then why haven’t you told me that you two are going out?”

“Because we are not.”

Kakashi blinked at her, “What? Don’t tell me nothing happened during your hogsmeade trip. I saw the way you two were flirting after our Quidditch match.”

The girl bit her lip. “Well he told me that he liked me too, and we sort of kissed.”

Kakashi snorted. “Sort of?”

Rin slapped his arm, causing him to drop his toast. “Shut up. We like each other but we’re not official yet, okay? And we decided to keep it a secret, so you’d better pretend you didn’t see anything.”

“Why not? I don’t see why your relationship must be kept a secret, since practically everyone knows you’ve been fancying Genma ever since– Ow! Okay, okay! I won’t say a word,” Kakashi cried out loud when Rin slapped his arm again.

“That is different,” Rin continued in that same deadly whisper. “We weren’t together then.”

“So you openly liking him is acceptable, but you can’t be publicly together with him?” Kakashi asked.

“In a way, yes. At least for now.”

“Wow, that makes so much sense,” Kakashi said sarcastically.

“There are things you don’t understand,” Rin muttered darkly. “Big societal issues.”

“Try me,” challenged Kakashi.

Rin hesitated for a long time, before she finally sighed. “Genma is a pure-blood.”

Kakashi raised his eyebrows. “And?” he probed.

Rin sighed exasperatedly. “I’m a half-blood. What if his parents are those stuck-up and arrogant parents who won’t let their kids marry anyone but another pure-blood? So we decided to keep our relationship a secret until we are ready to tell his parents. We can’t let them find out through someone else.”

Truthfully, Kakashi couldn’t see what the big deal was about being a pure-blood. The pure-bloods were exceptionally traditional families with a great sense of pride and honour for their ancestry. Generally, pure-bloods comprised wizards and witches born to purely magical families, which usually did not have a drop of non-magic blood in them. It was a severely diminishing notion, for many within the small pure-blood community were related at least distantly to each other, hence, most of them were forced to marry their cousins to preserve their pure-blood status. The prejudice against muggles was particularly strong in these families.

Kakashi raised his head and and realised with a jolt that Obito was directly in front of him.

“So there’s a chance that you won’t get their blessing?” Kakashi asked, his eyes still on Obito.

“Yes,” said Rin with a sigh. “I don’t know how it’ll play out in the future, but I’m pretty sure we can work it out. Genma also seems pretty confident that he’ll be able to convince his parents. They are quite strict, but they’ve never said anything bad about muggle-borns or half-bloods, so maybe they’ll have no problem with their only son marrying a half-blood?”

Kakashi snorted, turning back to his friend. “You just started talking to the dude a few weeks ago.”

His gaze travelled back to Obito, who was eating his sandwich in a rather barbaric way, munching on it and letting crumbs and sauce splay all over his mouth. Kakashi cracked a small smile.

Obito suddenly looked at him and Kakashi froze, smile still on his lips. Obito returned a grin and Kakashi gulped, feeling unsteady all of a sudden. He realised much too late that he had missed most of Rin’s speech.

“–and besides, I’m pretty sure we’re meant for each other.”

Still staring at Obito, Kakashi said, “You must like Rin a lot, huh?”

Rin blinked. “Excuse me?”

Kakashi turned to Rin, realising his error. “Sorry, I meant Genma,” he amended hastily. He felt his eyes being drawn towards Obito again, who was chewing on his mouthful of sandwich as he stared at Kakashi.

“Yeah… that’s what I said just now.”

Obito was practically eye-fucking Kakashi. He took another bite of his sandwich and gave him a wink. The whole scene did not play out well with the crumbs that were still littered all around his mouth and the sauce that was clinging onto the corners of his lips. It was altogether, a hilarious sight and Kakashi bit his bottom lip to keep himself from bursting into laughter.

“Hello?” Rin said, rather annoyed. She waved a hand in front of Kakashi’s face, bringing his attention back to her. “Earth to Kakashi?”

“Sorry,” Kakashi mumbled sheepishly. He heard a loud chuckle and looked around Rin to see that Obito was laughing at him. “Great, so do you like him?” he asked absentmindedly.

Rin gave him a dumbfounded look and glanced behind her shoulder to see what it was that was distracting Kakashi. She caught sight of Obito and turned back to Kakashi, surprise and suspicion written all over her features. “What’s going on between you and Obito?” she asked, eyes narrowing.

“What?” Kakashi turned back to Rin at the sound of Obito’s name. “Nothing,” he said in alarm. He flushed from embarrassment under his friend’s intense scrutiny.

After a few seconds, Rin’s eyes grew wide and she shouted, as loud as a fucking Howler, “You like him, don’t you?”

Kakashi’s jaw dropped and he looked hastily at the Slytherin, who had obviously heard the extremely loud statement and was looking thoroughly surprised, his eyebrows raised and a small smile slowly growing on his lips.

“No!” Kakashi shouted, so loudly that the nearby Ravenclaws jumped in shock, though he didn’t really give two shits; he wasn’t going to let Obito know about that, not yet anyway. “No, I don’t!”

He didn’t dare look at the Slytherin, for he didn’t want to see his reaction. Obito was probably laughing at him or gloating over his embarrassment, he didn’t know, but he knew for sure that he’d never felt so fucking embarrassed in his life and he really wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole. He glared at Rin, whom he now pegged to be the worst friend on this whole bloody planet.

“Okay, okay, chill,” Rin said. “You were just staring at him like you were in love or something.”

Kakashi gave Rin an aimed kick, but his foot struck the hard, wooden underside of the bench and he cursed under his breath.

Rin snorted. “Lousy.”

Kakashi flipped the bird and continued with his meal in angry silence, feeling the intensity of the unwavering stare Obito was giving him. Kakashi finished his meal in record time and making up some pathetic excuse, skedaddled out of the Great Hall, away from his abysmal excuse of a friend and away from Obito.

He roamed around the ground floor of the castle for a while, not entirely sure where he was heading to, but when he found himself approaching the West tower, he suddenly remembered his mother’s letter, which he had forgotten to read due to last night’s preoccupations and hurried towards it. He supposed he could hastily write something back and send it to her, before she got worried and came down to the school, demanding to see that her son hadn’t gotten himself killed in the Forbidden forest or something else that would explain his lack of response.

He climbed up the West tower, too preoccupied with everything that was going through his mind to notice the soft sound of footsteps that was following him. He climbed the steep steps, panting, and once he reached the door to the Owlery, paused to catch his breath. He could probably spend the remainder of his lunchtime up there, seeing as his letter would take quite some time to write. He placed a hand on the doorknob and twisted it, but before he could open the door, found himself being whirled around by a pair of rough hands. The two hands slammed against the door, arms flanking both sides of him, and he found himself faced with a pair of deep, sultry eyes and a familiar smirk.

“So, you like me?”

Kakashi stared at Obito in shock, taking in the cocky smile and the dark, intense gaze the other was giving him. “No,” he said.

“Your friend said–”

“I know what she said,” interrupted Kakashi, his hand pressing against Obito’s chest as he pushed him away. “But I don’t like you, not when you’re like this.”

Obito stepped back, looking a little confused.

“And don’t jump on me like that,” said the Ravenclaw. “I don’t like it.”

Obito stared at Kakashi for a while before he dropped his gaze. “Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Thank you,” responded Kakashi. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to send a letter.”

Kakashi turned around and opened the door, entering the Owlery, before shutting it in Obito’s stunned face. Once the wooden door was closed, he leant against it, placing a hand over his heart.

“Screw you, Obito,” he murmured as he remembered the heat evolving inside him at the extremely close proximity of their faces.

Shaking his head and trying to get his erratic heart to steady, he shuffled through the cold, dank room to get to his owl. Kakashi spent fifteen minutes reading the letter and writing his response, since the Owlery was particularly cold and he didn’t want to freeze his butt off up there. In addition to that, there was an increased likelihood he’d get some owl droppings on his head if he stayed any longer. Once he’d sent his hastily scribbled, half-hearted letter off to his mother, he made his way down to his next class.

Kakashi did not share any classes with Obito that day, and he went to bed feeling slightly bothered by the fact that the Slytherin had been busy talking to his Quidditch Captain during dinner and hadn’t looked at him once. It didn’t take him long to fall asleep, though the last image that remained in his mind was a close up of Obito’s face and a ghost of the memory of his body pressed lightly against his. Thus, it was no surprise when Kakashi woke up to that familiar, painful sensation he hadn’t felt in weeks, and he threw off his covers, hastily tiptoeing his way to the bathroom and closing the door. Kakashi jerked himself off, teeth biting down on his bottom lip to prevent himself from making any excessive noise that would wake his dormmates up. A few hurried breaths escaped through his gritted teeth and he gave a couple of soft, controlled mewls as he came. Kakashi went back to bed cursing everyone in the world, including Obito.

***

Tenzo was sitting with them again the next morning – he probably decided he liked their presence more than his other classmates, even though he was still relatively upset with Kakashi. Rin had practically pounced on the poor boy as he sat down, telling him how much they’d missed him and chiding him for ignoring them the day before. Tenzo and Rin had kept up a steady stream of conversation, talking about their classes and leaving Kakashi to brood on the only thing that seemed to be occupying his mind these days: Obito. He found himself, once again, facing the Slytherin table and casting short glimpses at him. Kakashi felt like he was encased in his own insular world, though he didn’t really mind that if it meant he could watch Obito without being interrupted.

Kakashi was immensely pleased to find that they had Astronomy with the Sytherins that night, for that meant that he would see him again. The day went by rather slowly for him, but when nightfall arrived, he quickly took his equipment and headed up the Astronomy tower, taking two steps at a time as he raced up the spiral staircase. He was early; none of the other students was there yet, except one.

Obito turned back, his black winter cloak blending in with the inky night sky and his silhouette prominent against the pale, white light spilling from the full moon. The boy smiled. “Hey,” he greeted.

“Hey,” Kakashi said.

“It’s a cold night.” Obito turned to his side, observing the bare, naked trees of the Forbidden forest.

“Yeah,” Kakashi replied, his breath rising from his lips like wisps of smoke. He stared at Obito’s sharp side profile and wondered how anyone could look so beautiful even at night.

Obito turned back to him and Kakashi could see that the other’s eyes were uncertain and withdrawn. He supposed Obito must have felt rather perplexed after yesterday’s incident outside the Owlery.

“So, um, what brings you up here so early?” Kakashi asked.

Obito shuffled around, though the distance between him and Kakashi remained the same.

“I wanted to see you,” he answered.

Kakashi raised his eyebrows in surprise. Obito was looking at him fondly, the moonlight giving him a soft, dreamy glow and Kakashi found it impossible to look away from him.

“I know you don’t like me, Kakashi,” Obito said softly. “And I know I’ve been treating you really badly the past year. I want to apologise for that. I also want to apologise for jumping on you like that yesterday.” He turned away slightly, expression sheepish. “I was just confused, because most of the time, you seem to hate my guts, but sometimes, I can’t help but feel as if you like me too and it’s really confusing, because I don’t know if it’s all in my head or not.” He raised his eyes and fixed Kakashi with a determined stare. “But one thing is certain: I’m going to try my damnedest to make you like me back.”

Kakashi’s heart skipped a beat, but his lips remained shut. He wasn’t going to tell Obito, not yet. Because he still wasn’t quite so sure what he wanted with the Slytherin.

The cold winter wind blew against their still frames; Kakashi looked up to see that Obito’s dark locks were lightly whisked away by the breeze and they brushed against his deep, affectionate eyes. Time seemed to stand still as the duo stood under the moonlight, their long silhouettes cast on the floor. Kakashi was caught in a spell that seemed to hold him still as he stared into Obito’s captivating eyes. It was a long moment, and it was one fuelled with such vehemence that Kakashi almost confessed his feelings to Slytherin right there and then. But he didn’t, for the moment was interrupted by the entrance of three fourth-year Ravenclaws, whose loud chatter and footsteps could be heard from the quiet battlement.

Obito looked away as they emerged through the opening of the staircase and the spell was broken.

Kakashi was left confused and caught up in a dilemma once again.

The rest of the class filed in soon after, followed by their Astronomy teacher, Professor Hyuuga Hiashi. He was wearing a deep blue cloak that twinkled under the moonlight as though it were the night sky and Kakashi was reminded of the way the stars in the sky were reflected in Obito’s onyx eyes.

They observed the planets in a very relaxed atmosphere and Professor Hyuuga had levitated tiny bluebell flames around them, providing them with sufficient warmth to make them feel snug in their cloaks. Astronomy was always a silent affair that did not involve much moving. Many students liked to take this as an opportunity to catch some sleep, as everyone would be lying on their stomachs, either stargazing with their telescopes, or hunched over their maps as they tried to jot down the position of the planets. However, Professor Hyuuga always had a sharp eye for these students and whenever he caught one dozing off, he’d simply remove the balls of fire surrounding that student and it would take only a few minutes for him or her to wake up, shivering from the cold.

When Astronomy ended, it was already eleven and Kakashi was yawning as he rolled his map up. He mentally praised himself for not leaving any unfinished work for his Astronomy days, since he was feeling rather fatigued and was seeing stars from constantly staring up at them. He tried to pack his telescope, but found that it was stuck. Already desperate to sink into his warm bed, he tried to force his brass telescope to shorten. It wouldn’t budge and Kakashi was on the verge of flinging the damn thing from the tower, when a warm hand covered his own. An electrifying jolt surged up his arm and he quickly looked up to see that Obito had approached him and was now trying to help him.

He watched speechlessly as the Slytherin turned the top part of the telescope and slid the sections down, shortening it. Obito turned his gaze to Kakashi, gently pushing the telescope back towards him. His hand remained over Kakashi’s.

“Thanks,” Kakashi said softly. He was surprised to find that his voice was still steady, for his mind was already going haywire and his heart seemed to want to jump out of his throat.

Obito’s features eased into a smile. He dropped his hands and stepped back. Licking his lips, he shifted his gaze away and slowly walked towards the stairs, disappearing through the opening.

Kakashi sighed. Since when had he become such a mess in Obito’s presence? He slung his telescope over his shoulder and left the top of the Astronomy tower, climbing down and heading towards the Ravenclaw tower. His thoughts could not function well that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me : *sees 60+ kudos* there are over 60 people reading and enjoying this?? I cannot disappoint *cracks knuckles* *proceeds to stay up for 48 hours trying to finish the next chapter*
> 
> Thank you so much for all the feedback! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter <3


	5. Chapter 5

Kakashi was slowly beginning to find that his perception of the Slytherin had changed. For one, he was always looking for the fourth-year, whenever he thought they would be in the same vicinity, and secondly, he had begun to anticipate having classes with him, always hoping that Obito would sit next to him every time. Obito always did, and the small interactions they had in class always put Kakashi in a happy mood for the rest of the day. They had practical Charms again on Friday, the last day of the term, and Kakashi and Obito could finally hold a decent conversation.

“When is your birthday?” Obito asked, as he attempted to seize and pull the chair that was in front of him.

“15th September,” replied Kakashi, who was trying to pull his own chair towards him. He was already used to the Slytherin’s random questions and it was beginning to be second nature for him to answer them without much thought. “You?”

“10th February. “ The Slytherin frowned. “Your birthday passed.”

Kakashi nodded, remembering how Yahiko and the rest of his teammates had let off some Weasleys’ Wildfire Whiz-bangs in their dormitory, in which he’d charmed the sparklers to spell out, “Happy Birthday Grumpy Ass!” in fiery trails across the whole room.

Obito was silent for a moment, before he decided to ask another question, “What do you usually do in your free time?”

Professor Akimichi had pushed all the tables to the side, making the students stand in rows with chairs placed in front of them, so that they could practise the Carpe Retractum spell.

“Apart from studying, of course,” Obito added when a long, thin rope extended from the tip of his wand and latched onto the chair. He leant back slightly, pulling the chair closer to him.

“Read. Sometimes stare out of the window.”

Obito snorted.

“At least I’ve got a window I can look out of,” Kakashi said defensively.

“Hey,” Obito grinned. “The dungeons aren’t so bad. We have an exclusive view of the depths of the Great Lake and sometimes, you can see the Giant Squid’s ass stuck to the window. It’s not uncommon to see Grindylows leering at you either.”

Kakashi thought that was a rather cool and peculiar sight. He realised he didn’t know much about the Slytherin common room. “Tell me more about your common room,” he said, as he repelled the chair back to its original position.

“Not sure I’m supposed to tell you,” laughed Obito. He continued, anyway, “Well, as you know, we’re situated under the Great Lake so the light gets filtered in in this nice green glow. Others might find it eerie, but we think it’s nice and calming. And like I’ve said, all sorts of creatures pop up at the window. I once saw a Mermaid peeking in, but of course, they don’t usually head there. I reckon that one was lost or something. Apart from that, we have green lanterns hanging below the ceiling and stone walls and old, carved furniture, so it’s pretty unique from the other houses – not that I’ve been to them. But I believe they’re all rather generic.”

“We have a library,” interjected Kakashi.

“Is that so?” Obito said in surprise. “Okay, maybe not all the other common rooms are the same, but seriously, I think the Slytherin common room is really cool. You should come down one day.”

Kakashi looked at him in astonishment. The chair he was currently pulling towards him stopped moving and the ropes disappeared. “You’re inviting me?” he asked in awe.

“Yeah. If…” Obito licked his lips. “If you want to, I mean. We can just hang out.”

Kakashi turned back to his chair and stared at the immobile object, thinking. He didn’t think there were many students from other houses who had been to the Slytherin common room, with permission. The Slytherins were proud of their segregation from the other houses, such that no Slytherin really befriended anyone from a different house. It suddenly struck Kakashi that his companionship with Obito might be seen as odd by the other students. He looked around the class. There was a clear divide between the Ravenclaw and Slytherin students – there was absolutely no inter-house camaraderie. Kakashi didn’t know if he was even allowed into the Slytherin common room. He turned back to Obito and saw that the other was watching him rather tentatively, as though awaiting his response.

“Sure,” he said. “You can come over to the Ravenclaw tower too, if you like.”

Obito’s face lit up into a beaming smile. “I can come over anytime,” he said arrogantly. “Your riddles are easy to crack.”

“Have you tried answering them?” Kakashi asked.

“No,” answered Obito. “But how hard can they be?”

Kakashi rolled his eyes. “You’re very full of yourself, you know?”

“I know.” Obito shot him a dazzling smile that caught him off guard and he accidentally cast the Carpe Retractum spell at Professor Akimichi’s desk, dragging it over to him and sending Professor Akimichi’s flask of hot tea, his Quibbler, and the many ornaments he had arranged on his desk to go flying.

Professor Akimichi got up from his seat and furiously stormed over to Kakashi, who gulped. “Five points from Ravenclaw.”

Obito couldn’t stop laughing throughout the entire remainder of the lesson.

They walked out of Charms together and entered the Great Hall, Rin raising her eyebrows when she saw Kakashi and Obito split ways once they’d passed through the entrance. Tenzo looked back down at his pudding and ate silently. When Kakashi approached them, Rin immediately demanded to know what was going on.

“He’s nice,” Kakashi began. “And friendly, too. We just, sort of, became friends, I suppose.”

“Nice? Friendly? Friends?” Rin gaped at Kakashi. “Kakashi, are we talking about the same person?”

“Of course we are,” Kakashi blushed. “We’re talking about Obito, right?”

Rin just continued to stare incredulously at the fourth-year. A loud clank was heard beside them and Kakashi looked round to see that Tenzo had placed his spoon down into his empty bowl. He quickly got up, murmuring something about having to study for his Transfiguration test and hurried out of the Great Hall. Almost immediately, Iruka rose from the Gryffindor table and followed him out.

Rin was momentarily distracted by the third-year and as her eyes followed Iruka out of the hall, she told Kakashi, “He keeps following Tenzo everywhere. They even sit together whenever we have a class with the Gryffindors.”

“Pretty sure he just wants to be friends,” Kakashi said as he dug into his Shepherd’s pie.

Rin whipped her head back to Kakashi, eyes squinting dangerously. “And what’s this I hear about my best friend befriending his long-time tormentor and bully?”

“It’s exactly that.” Kakashi put a spoonful of pie into his mouth. “I like talking to him.”

Rin gave Kakashi a calculating look and moments later, shook her head in a displeased way. “You are infatuated with him.” When Kakashi opened his mouth to rebut, she continued, “And if you deny that, you’re a complete fool, Kakashi.”

Kakashi looked down at his Shepherd’s pie, feeling abashed.

“But why him?” Rin continued shaking her head, befuddled, but then her eyes widened, “Did he, perhaps, spike your drink with Amortentia?”

Kakashi shot her an offended look. “Do I look emotionally unstable to you? If he did, wouldn’t I be all over him by now?”

“Well, you have a point.” Rin thinned her lips. “But why are you suddenly in love with him if he didn’t give you a love potion? We both know he’s a complete ass.”

“I’m not in love with him.” Kakashi tried to deny. “And he’s not a complete ass.”

“Come again?”

“You don’t know him well enough,” Kakashi muttered. “He’s actually a pretty decent person… most of the time.”

Rin looked like she was about to say something, but stopped herself from doing so. Instead, she opted for shaking her head and returned to her meal.

“Are you going to stay for Christmas?” Kakashi asked, trying to change the topic.

“No,” replied Rin. “You know those Lethifold deaths? My mum’s a little iffy about having me in the same area as these creatures. Are you staying?”

“Yes,” said Kakashi.

Rin groaned. “You always stay for Christmas. Does it hurt you to go back every once in a while? We can meet up over the holidays.”

“It’s only two weeks,” Kakashi pointed out. “And besides, the school is nice and quiet over the holidays. I can make full use of the empty Ravenclaw library to study.” He didn’t add that he was even more reluctant to go back that year, because Obito would be remaining in Hogwarts for Christmas too.

“You’re no fun,” Rin grumbled. “In that case, I better be receiving my present tomorrow. My family’s going to the tropics to spend Christmas there. I don’t want your owl to be overworked.”

Kakashi smiled. Rin’s present was already carefully wrapped and stored under his bed. He looked over to the Slytherin table and saw Obito. An idea struck him and he kept it in the back of his mind until the next morning.

***

At breakfast the next day, Kakashi anticipated the arrival of the owls.

“What are you so eager for?” Rin asked curiously as Kakashi ripped open the Daily Prophet, fingers nimbly flipping through the pages.

He didn’t speak until he found the page he wanted, at which point, he let out an exuberant, “Aha!” and spread the newspaper across the table.

Rin peered at the page Kakashi was currently scrutinising. “Advertisements?” she asked in confusion.

“I’m looking for gift ideas. Christmas is nearing so there’ll be a lot of discounts on gift items.” Kakashi’s fingers ran along the underside of some striking purple text, “Enchanted Mirror. Fixed with a simple blemish-clearing spell that will take care of all your pimply problems for you with just one glance!”

“Speaking of gifts.” Kakashi looked up to see Rin impatiently holding out an outstretched hand. “Where’s mine?”

Kakashi reached into his bag with one hand and took out a nicely wrapped box. He flung it towards Rin, who caught it, eyes sparkling.

“Happy Christmas,” Kakashi said.

The girl smiled happily, “Thanks. I’ll open it at home.”

Kakashi laughed as he returned to his Prophet. An interesting section of text advertising some high-quality broomstick servicing kit caught his attention. He read through it and deciding he was pleased enough with its description, folded the page and carefully stuffed the Daily Prophet into his bag.

Most of the students left Hogwarts after breakfast, and Kakashi saw Rin and Tenzo off at the Entrance Hall.

“I’ll see you two next year,” Kakashi called out.

Rin turned back to give him a wave and Tenzo shot him a small smile. Kakashi felt glad that the younger boy was starting to ease up to him again, though he gave most of the credit to Iruka, who had become something like Tenzo’s new best friend. It appeared the two of them got along really well and Tenzo seemed much happier now that he had Iruka as a companion.

Kakashi trudged up the castle, making his way over to the school library. He could get in a few hours of studying before lunchtime. Kakashi plopped himself down at his usual table. The library was much emptier now that two-thirds of the school had returned home for the holidays and he appreciated the peace and quiet very much.

He worked on his Charms homework, the top of his parchment extending slowly over the edge of his table as he wrote his essay. He had just finished writing his last sentence, feeling relatively pleased with his response to the question on the similarities and differences between Summoning and Banishing charms, when a meek third-year Gryffindor approached him.

“Hi, Kakashi right?” Iruka said, scratching the back of his head.

“Yeah,” replied a surprised Kakashi.

“May I sit here?” Iruka gestured at the chair in front of Kakashi.

“Sure,” Kakashi said.

Iruka sat down in front of Kakashi. He looked a little nervous, as though he wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be talking to him. “I’m Iruka, by the way,” he introduced himself. “We’ve met on the pitch.”

Kakashi nodded, politely waiting for the other to continue.

“So, um, I know this is a bit out of the blue, but I’ve been thinking of getting Tenzo a Christmas gift and since you’re his friend, I thought maybe you could tell me what he likes,” Iruka said shyly.

Kakashi was taken aback – he hadn’t expected that. “What are you thinking of getting him?” he asked.

“Well, I don’t know.” Iruka scratched the back of his head. “I mean, I could just get him whatever, but I really want to give him something that he really likes and, um, appreciates. Something special, but not too elaborate.” He blushed a little. “I thought maybe I could get him a new set of Seeker gloves, since I noticed his were looking a little worn-out during our last match, but he bought himself a new pair just last week.”

Kakashi observed Iruka the whole time he was speaking, taking in his slightly ducked head, his rapidly blinking eyes and the blush that crawled up to his ears whenever he talked about Tenzo. He had a nagging suspicion that Iruka had a small crush on Tenzo and if his assumptions were right, Kakashi wanted to push the timid Gryffindor in the right direction, for he was still feeling rather guilty for causing Tenzo dejection that night.

“Tenzo let slip that he likes cute stuff. He’s fond of all things cuddly and small,” Kakashi mused. “Also, his previous cat died and he was quite upset over it. Not saying that you should get him a cat, since I’m pretty sure he’ll get a new one over the holidays, but just letting you know that he’ll like anything that’s cute and furry.”

Iruka pondered for a bit and then nodded his head. He beamed at Kakashi, who couldn’t help but return a smile. “Thanks for your help. I think I know what to get him now,” he said excitedly and got up from his seat.

“Oh, and it might be a good idea to add in a letter. Make it more personal, you know?” Kakashi added.

Iruka nodded again, clearly pleased with the information he’d got.

Kakashi chuckled as he watched the Gryffindor leave the library enthusiastically. He was about to return to his Charms homework, when a familiar figure caught his eye. He watched in bewilderment, as Obito emerged from in between a pair of bookshelves. He looked displeased.

“What’s the matter?” Kakashi asked as Obito stalked over to him, a dark expression still on his face.

“What were you talking to the Gryffindor kid about?” Obito huffed as he took the seat Iruka vacated.

“Why does it matter?” Kakashi raised both his eyebrows.

“He looked happy,” Obito said disapprovingly.

“Well, yes, because he was asking me what Tenzo would like for Christmas and I told him,” Kakashi returned. When Obito looked confused, he added, “I think he likes Tenzo.”

“Oh.” Obito’s expression cleared. “He does?”

“I think,” said Kakashi. “And I shouldn’t need to explain it to you. Why were you looking like you’d just eaten some Acid Pops?” He watched the Slytherin’s face carefully.

Obito caught him staring at him and let out a long breath, finally saying, “I was jealous.”

Kakashi raised his eyebrows. “You get jealous pretty easily.”

“Shut up, I know.” Obito turned red, though it was greatly contrasted with the faintly aloof expression he was trying to maintain.

The corners of Kakashi’s lips twitched and a smile grew on Obito’s face as he saw it. Not wanting to burst out laughing in the library, Kakashi looked down, catching sight of his bag and remembering something.

“Oh yeah,” he said as he reached down and rummaged through his bag for something. He pulled out a long, striped scarf and handed it to Obito. “I’ve been wanting to give this back to you, but I kept forgetting.”

Obito took the scarf wordlessly, his thumb running over the woollen fabric. He nodded.

Suddenly, Kakashi remembered that snowy morning in the forest during Care of Magical Creatures and he bit his lip, the memory of Obito’s lingering touch heating up his skin again. It was getting awfully hot in the library, with Obito’s warm eyes on his and the hypnotising trance Kakashi always seemed to sink into whenever he locked gazes with Obito. He broke off eye contact, not wanting to lose himself in the depths of the other’s onyx eyes and gathered his things, hastily standing up.

“Where are you going?” Obito’s confused voice sounded.

“The Ravenclaw tower. I’m, uh, done with my Charms homework,” Kakashi said as he packed all his things into his bag and slung it over his shoulder.

“I’ll walk you back,” Obito offered, getting up from his seat.

“No, no, it’s fine. I’ll see you soon.” Kakashi hurried out of the library before Obito could do anything, leaving the Slytherin at the table, looking utterly confused.

Kakashi headed straight for the Ravenclaw library, which was blissfully quiet and vacant now that it was the holidays – it was usually packed full with Ravenclaws and most of the time, Kakashi wouldn’t be able to find a space to study. He tried to concentrate on his work – it was actually a nice place to study, with the lingering smell of ancient books and the warm, airy surroundings – but he found himself repeatedly staring out of the tall window, gazing at the snowy grounds and recalling how magical Obito looked with the snow all around him. Kakashi groaned, flinging his quill onto the table and covering his eyes with his hands. He wasn’t simply crushing on Obito, he was slowly falling for him.

***

Kakashi didn’t see much of Obito over the first week. They didn’t have classes over the holidays and hence, he was more or less cooped up in his deserted dormitory. All four of his dormmates had gone back for Christmas and Kakashi spent all his time in the dormitory alone, either studying, or burying his nose in a book. The only places he frequented were the library, the Ravenclaw tower and the Great Hall. Rin had once asked him why he still chose to remain at Hogwarts if he didn’t have much to do at school and Kakashi had replied that it was simply a more conducive environment to study.

Due to his antisocial routine, he didn’t see Obito much, but the Slytherin sometimes came over to the nearly empty Ravenclaw table during mealtimes to talk to him. Kakashi would find himself often remaining an hour more than he should, being lost in conversation with Obito. He would then try to excuse himself to head off to the library, for he really needed to get his homework and studying done, but he was always pleasantly surprised when Obito offered to accompany him. Kakashi had very rarely seen the Slytherin in the library prior to that, so he was pretty sure Obito wasn’t there to simply study. And indeed, he was so distracted by Obito’s incessant chatter that he completely neglected his work, only to miserably find out later in his dormitory that he hadn’t written more than a few lines of his essay. Thus, after the first few times, Kakashi decided to head straight up to the Ravenclaw tower after finishing his meal. He felt bad for ditching Obito, for the other boy would stare after him with a slightly hurt expression every time he told him he’d be going back to his common room, but he decided his academics were more important. And besides, he did spend an extra hour talking to Obito in the Great Hall after mealtimes.

After three solid days of religiously confining himself to the Ravenclaw tower, Kakashi finally ventured to a different part of the castle on the eve of Christmas, though it was only because he needed to send out Christmas presents. Kakashi was surprised at the drastic transformation the castle had undergone in the past few days, though he probably shouldn’t be, seeing as he woke up to a dusty wreath hung to his headboard. The corridors were strung with holly and streamers, fairy lights floating below the ceiling and small shimmering Christmas trees placed at random intervals next to the walls. He reached the base of the West tower, finding the railing entwined with more streamers. He lugged an armful of presents up the tower, grunting when he reached the door to the circular room at the top. He burst into the Owlery, some of the owls fluttering away in surprise when the wooden door hit the stone wall with a loud bang. Kakashi went over to his screech owl, which was eyeing him rather sceptically, as though he knew what Kakashi was about to make him do. He gave a loud screech and flapped his wings.

“Hey, Sukea,” Kakashi greeted. He put his presents down and scratched his owl’s neck. “Think you’re up for a heavy delivery?”

The owl gave him a beady look, as if to say, ‘What choice do I have?’

Kakashi smiled and picked up a large package containing a cooking book that held loads of scrumptious recipes and spells to make them, and a tie that could change colour according to the attire the wizard was donning and the occasion he was about to attend. He attached the package to Sukea’s hind legs.

“To mum and dad, okay?” He gave him another loving scratch and watched as the owl flew out of the window.

Kakashi used the school owls to deliver his remaining presents to his friends. By the time he arrived at the last present, his fingers were already numb from the cold drafts that consistently blew into the small room. He shivered, fumbling as he tried to attach a small letter to it. He stared at the brown, square package for a while. He honestly did not know much about Obito, and he’d thought long and hard about whether he should give him a Christmas present. In the end, Kakashi had decided to purchase a brand new broomstick servicing kit, for he’d heard the other complaining about his servicing kit being too old to do its job properly. He’d decided getting him something practical was the best way to go, since he didn’t know exactly what Obito liked and had failed to ask him on numerous occasions.

Kakashi quickly left the Owlery thereafter, scuttling down the spiral staircase and heading back to the Ravenclaw tower. He turned himself in early that night, happy thoughts of Christmas flooding his dreams.

***

Kakashi awoke, excitement blooming in his mind as he realised that it was Christmas day. A soft Christmas jingle trickled into his dormitory and he supposed it was the work of some enthusiastic first-year. Swinging his legs down from his bed, Kakashi drew his curtains apart and found, to his delight, a heap of Christmas presents stacked neatly at the foot of his bed. He brought all of them up onto his bed, carefully inspecting them.

He recognised a huge, boxy present as one from his parents, since they always wrapped his gifts with the same wrapping paper every year. He unwrapped it to find that his mother had enclosed a good one month’s supply of his favourite snacks, as well as ‘The History of Ancient Runes and How They Were Derived from Germanic Languages’, a book he’d been pining for, for ages. Kakashi stared happily at it, before moving on to his other presents. Rin had given him a study planner that screamed at him to complete his homework whenever he opened it, with a letter that said, ‘Since you’ve been staring _longingly_ at your homework’. Kakashi placed the letter and the planner aside with a light-hearted laugh and continued unwrapping his Christmas gifts. As he unwrapped more presents, a slight sinking feeling appeared in the pit of his stomach and when he’d set aside his last gift, which was a badly knitted sweater from his muggle aunt, he felt hollow inside.

He’d been expecting a gift from Obito and he hadn’t received any. He reasoned that the Slytherin probably didn’t think they were close enough, and truthfully, Kakashi didn’t even know why he’d thought he would give him a Christmas present. Maybe he believed Obito liking him would be a sufficient enough reason, since, after all, Kakashi had given him a present.

But maybe he just didn’t like Kakashi that much. And besides, they weren’t the closest of friends; the Slytherin wasn’t obliged to give him a present. The only friends he’d received gifts from were Rin and Tenzo. He hadn’t even given his dormmates presents, nor had he received any from them, even though he’d spent his last three and a half school years with them. Kakashi still felt strangely empty at the fact that Obito hadn’t gotten him anything though, and he was beginning to think he didn’t matter much to the Slytherin as much the other mattered to him at that moment. He went down for breakfast, his heart feeling heavy.

The hall was transformed overnight, though most of the decorations were saved for the feast that night. Nevertheless, the Great Hall looked simply splendid that morning. The enchanted ceiling was a lovely pale grey, with wisps of snow falling down the top half of the hall. There were humongous Christmas trees erected at the corners, with what looked like gnomes strung grumpily on the branches. A few fairies flitted through the pine leaves, giggling amongst themselves and glancing shyly up at passers-by. Glitter seemed to prevail most of the decorations, for the entire place sparkled in a bedazzling way. This was wonderfully complemented by the icicles hanging from the edges of the pillars, bewitched so that they wouldn’t melt. Kakashi looked down in awe, noticing the way the marble floor had been transfigured into what looked like an ice rink, though the surface still felt like marble. Piles of real, bewitched snow sat at corners of the hall and a few first-years could be seen making snowmen out of them.

Kakashi headed to the Ravenclaw table, which sides were decked with holly. He ate his breakfast, watching as everyone in the Great Hall merrily sank into the Christmas spirit. He saw Obito come in a little while later, giving him a soft smile before heading towards the Slytherin table. Kakashi felt a little disappointed that Obito didn’t sit with him. Nonetheless, he finished his breakfast and made his way back to the Ravenclaw tower. He studied all the way till evening, only leaving the tower briefly to enjoy his lunch, during which, Obito hadn’t sat with him either. He finally made his way down to the Great Hall for the feast at six.

The feast seemed to grow even more impressive as the years went by. A soft chamber music wafted all around them in Christmassy tunes. The ceiling was now a dark, mesmerising blue and the snowflakes sparkled in contrast with it. The fairies had taken to abandoning the small branches of the Christmas trees, floating above their heads and buzzing softly among themselves. Three house tables had been removed, such that there was only one long table along the centre of the hall to accommodate the small number of students that stayed behind for Christmas.

Kakashi swept a glance across the table, immediately spotting Obito, his black hair prominent as he turned to talk to a Slytherin friend. He shot a casual glance over at the entrance, spotting Kakashi and immediately waved him over. Heart warming a little, Kakashi strolled over to Obito, taking his place beside him. He was immediately enveloped by Obito’s warm presence and his charming smile.

“Hey,” Obito said, a warm hand enclosing his own briefly.

“Hey,” Kakashi returned, a little befuddled as his heart trembled slightly.

A glass was clinked repetitively and all their attention was brought to the front of the table, where their headmistress, Professor Tsunade, sat.

“Good evening to all and a very jolly Christmas,” she said, smiling kindly at them. “I’m delighted that all of you remaining here at Hogwarts are joining us for the feast. I’m sure you must all be very hungry now, which is why, without further ado, let the feast begin.”

She gave a soft clap and immediately, all the plates started filling up with all sorts of delectable dishes. Warm, golden-brown turkeys appeared on the largest plates, surrounded by roasted sirloins submerged in gravy, bowls of vegetable soup served with rustic bread, smoked salmon and a selection of seasonal vegetables and roasted potatoes. Kakashi looked at the generous spread in awe, before helping himself to some of his favourites.

It was a delightful night, with Obito sitting right beside him, talking to him occasionally, and a wide variety of foods spread out in front of him in all their delectable glory. Kakashi took a sip of his pumpkin juice, wincing in shock when he tasted bitter.

Obito noticed his expression and whispered to him, his breath tickling his ear, “Asuma figured out a spell to turn it into rum. He got a bit excited and mixed all our pumpkin juice with it. Don’t drink too much.”

Kakashi nodded, still a little shocked. He took another sip, savouring the mixture of sweet and bitter, with a slight aftertaste that scorched the back of his throat. It was a surprisingly tasty mixture. He continued feeding himself, extremely content with how everything tasted simply perfect. Konan wouldn’t be too happy that he was stuffing himself full, but Kakashi decided one night of indulgence wouldn’t hurt.

The feast ended with loud banter, most of the students mildly intoxicated, though not enough to raise the awareness of the teachers. The professors headed off early, perhaps to have another round of toast in the staffroom, and the noise level grew as more students started misbehaving in their absence, their actions fuelled by alcohol.

Kakashi’s head was buzzing a little as he watched two Slytherin sixth-years climb onto the table and dance to slurred, off-tuned singing. A warm breath tickled his right ear and he jumped a little, barely registering Obito’s whispered words, “Want to have a little walk outside?”

Kakashi nodded, immediately standing up and heading straight out of the Great Hall with Obito right beside him. They passed by the decorated hallways and stepped outside, where a light snowfall prevailed. Wordlessly, they both walked through a sheltered walkway without having a destination in mind.

Kakashi stumbled a few times, even though his footsteps were slow, and Obito had to keep grabbing his elbow to stop him from falling. Kakashi frowned when he lost his balance for the third time, wondering how much he’d actually drunk to get him that tipsy.

Obito laughed, his warm grip steady on his arm. “Told you not to drink so much.”

Kakashi registered the fact that Obito’s soft voice appeared a bit too loud to his ears and the faint, yellow glow of the light above their heads seemed blaringly bright and decided that he'd drank much more than he thought. Obito’s hand slipped down and held onto his firmly. Kakashi felt immediately light-headed and he was sure it wasn’t because of the alcohol this time.

They walked in silence, Kakashi’s hand in Obito’s. It felt very nice and the Ravenclaw found that he didn’t want to ever let go. They watched their surroundings during the long stretch of silence, Kakashi thinking how magical everything was that night. The snowflakes seemed to dance in gentle spirals and the ground was caked in the purest blanket of untouched snow. Even the Forbidden forest, with its menacing demeanour and dark gloom, seemed like something out of a painting, white snow flecking the trees’ branches and softening their harsh edges.

They stopped once they reached the end of the shelter, an uncovered stone path leading all the way down to the Whomping Willow, the forest and the gamekeeper hut. Obito let go of Kakashi’s hand and turned to him. The Slytherin had a soft, affectionate expression on his face and amidst the haze clouding his thoughts, Kakashi felt a warm joy crawl up his chest. Obito’s eyes were warm and tender, melting the core of his heart and making him feel like all he needed was the boy in front of him and winter would be the warmest season of the year. There was a soft blur around the edges of Obito’s face and Kakashi blinked twice, trying to get his slightly intoxicated mind to focus. He gulped when he found his eyes uncontrollably drawn towards Obito’s lips, the alcohol in his system fuelling daring thoughts in his mind.

Kakashi turned away, not trusting himself to be able to control himself. He saw the castle and marvelled at the way it looked enchantingly beautiful, snow-capped and with a shimmer of crystallised icicles hanging off its turrets.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Kakashi returned breathlessly, his eyes still on the castle.

“I received your present this morning.”

He turned to look at Obito and found that the other’s onyx eyes were fixed intensely on his.

“Thank you, I really liked it,” he said sincerely.

Kakashi said nothing, he was too lost in Obito’s eyes.

Obito reached into his robes, pulling out a small box. “Sorry, it isn’t wrapped.”

Kakashi blinked, taking the box from Obito’s hand. He felt the smooth velvet texture. “Is this for me?”

“Yes,” Obito smiled.

Kakashi opened the box, his eyes widening when he saw that it was a beautiful gold watch. Stars and moons replaced hour and minute hands and they floated dreamily around the crystal in the centre. He gaped at Obito. “This must have costed a fortune,” he said disbelievingly.

Obito scratched the back of his head. “It’s alright.”

Kakashi turned down to look at the gold watch again. The diamonds that were imbedded in the midnight blue background sparkled under the dim light. “And I got you a broomstick servicing kit,” he muttered, slightly ashamed.

“Hey, I love your gift,” said Obito. Kakashi looked up at him, taking in his genuine, heart-warming smile. “I really do. Thank you.”

Obito raised a warm hand and ever so gently, trailed a soft line down his cheek, hovering beneath his jaw and thumbing the small beauty mark under the left corner of his mouth.

Kakashi’s heart throbbed loudly in his chest and the buzzing in his head grew louder. He couldn’t think, he couldn’t organise his chaotic thoughts; all he could comprehend was Obito’s touch and the warm, passionate gaze the other was giving him.

A feral instinct kicked up inside Kakashi and he found himself, once again, glancing down at Obito’s lips, a strange desire to find out how they tasted like erupting within him. He brought his gaze back up to Obito’s beautiful, dark eyes and stammered, “M-mistletoe.”

They looked up at the same time, staring at the small bundle of leaves, tied and hung delicately above them with a red ribbon. Kakashi brought his gaze back down and looked directly into Obito’s eyes, which had widened slightly in surprise. A certain nervousness kicked into his system, but the alcohol pushed him forwards and he closed his eyes as he connected his lips with Obito’s.

They were soft – that was the first thought that shot through Kakashi’s mind, before all coherency was dashed out of his head by this warm sensation that exploded from his heart. It was a fierce passion that brought his arms up to wrap themselves around Obito’s neck. The Slytherin tasted sweet and even more intoxicating than Firewhisky.

Obito’s lips were parted in shock. He hesitantly placed both his hands on either side of Kakashi’s waist and kissed him back. After a moment, he swiped his tongue over Kakashi’s lower lip and their kiss deepened, the thirst both of them felt urging them to feverously press their lips together.

Kakashi had never felt more alive. He felt Obito’s thumb on his chin and parted his lips, allowing the older boy to slip his tongue into his mouth. Obito slanted his head and kissed him deeper, pressing them closer till there’s no space left to breathe. Hazy thoughts suppressing sensible judgements, Kakashi brought his hands to Obito’s chest, grasping the front of the Slytherin’s robes and letting out a soft whimper. Suddenly, Obito’s hands gripped Kakashi’s and he broke the kiss, the pair of them panting once the cool air hit their parted lips.

“Kakashi, no,” Obito said firmly, staring into Kakashi’s unfocused eyes. “You’re drunk.”

“I’m not drunk,” murmured Kakashi.

“Still, you’re not thinking straight.”

Kakashi remained silent, his previous burning desire replaced by a draughty absence; it felt as though he’d been plunged into cold water.

“Let’s get you back up to the Ravenclaw tower,” Obito muttered softly and took Kakashi’s hand again, leading him back to the castle.

The walk back to the castle was much too short. The cold gripped every inch of Kakashi’s skin now that he wasn’t locked in Obito’s embrace and he shivered as they made their way up the walkway. He didn’t want to enter the castle, however, for he was afraid their magical moment down at the end of the walkway would dissipate.

They climbed up the Ravenclaw tower together, Obito being patient with Kakashi’s occasional stumbles as he tried to focus his clogged-up mind on the steps. They stopped at the door of the Ravenclaw common room. Obito knocked on it with the knocker.

“At night they come without being fetched,

And by day they are lost without being stolen.

What are they?”

Obito turned to Kakashi, who sighed and answered, “Dreams.”

The door opened. Kakashi turned to Obito and they stared at each other for a while, a heavy silence pressing down upon them. Obito licked his lips and slowly brought a hand up, caressing the side of Kakashi’s pale face once more, his fingers barely making contact with Kakashi’s cheek.

Kakashi closed his eyes to take in the gentle touch.

“What does this make us?” Obito said softly.

Kakashi opened his eyes and saw that the other was staring at him with that same affectionate, hazy look he had back under that sheltered walkway. The air around them thickened with unspoken wishes.

The hand dropped and Obito smiled, the gentlest, sweetest smile Kakashi had ever seen on him and he realised he loved this smile as much as he loved the Slytherin’s periodic smirks.

“Goodnight, Kakashi,” Obito said.

“Goodnight, Obito,” he returned.

Kakashi walked into the Ravenclaw common room, turning back to gaze at the Slytherin one last time before the door gently closed, shutting his magical night away.

***

He was so embarrassed. Kakashi curled up under his covers, pulling the eiderdown over his head and hiding his hurt pride from the rest of the world. He stayed there for a couple more hours, since there was no Ebisu to urge him to wake up, nor was there a Tokuma to threaten to splash him with cold water. He wallowed in his own embarrassment, trying to delay going down to the Great Hall as much as possible, where he would have to see Obito. By the time Kakashi managed to drag himself out of bed, it was already noon and lunch was about to be served. He slowly got himself ready, dragging out the time and wishing he wasn’t starving enough to have to eat. Kakashi reluctantly trudged down the Ravenclaw tower and took the longest route to the Great Hall. Taking a deep breath, he entered the hall and instantly, his eyes were brought towards the Slytherin table. Obito had immediately looked up when Kakashi walked in. They made eye contact.

Kakashi ducked his head and quickly made his way to the other side of the hall, towards the Ravenclaw table. He sat down, his back to the Slytherins and helped himself to a sandwich. The bread tasted extremely dry in his mouth. Kakashi tried to eat his food as fast as he could, though his mouthfuls often got stuck in his throat. He gulped down his pumpkin juice, trying to ease down the dry lumps. A shadow appeared before him and he looked up. His eyes widened and he choked on his pumpkin juice.

Obito placed his plate in front of Kakashi and sat down. A few Ravenclaws sitting along the table shot him curious glances.

“Careful,” Obito said as Kakashi coughed violently.

Kakashi reached for his pumpkin juice, the burning in his trachea subsiding as the cool liquid washed down his throat.

“I didn’t see you at breakfast,” Obito commented idly. He took a bite off his sandwich and stared expectantly at Kakashi.

Kakashi avoided his gaze. He remembered the previous night, how the gentle wind brushed against their bodies pressed together, how Obito’s hands had felt around his waist and how his lips had moved in synchronisation with Kakashi’s, like they belonged together. Kakashi felt his heart thump loudly in his chest and he bit his bottom lip nervously. He shouldn’t have drunk so much of that weird concoction that night. He glimpsed at the Slytherin and saw that he was still staring at him. Obito looked a little apprehensive.

Kakashi started poking his sandwich with his fork absentmindedly. There was an awkward silence as each waited for the other to say something. Eventually, Kakashi spoke up. “Look, about last night…” he trailed off, not really knowing how to continue. He supposed he could be truthful and tell Obito that he liked him very much. But there was a nagging thought at the back of his mind stopping him from showing his feelings every time. It wasn’t anything intense, just something that made him slightly uncomfortable.

“Do you regret?” Obito asked softly.

Kakashi looked up at him and saw that his eyes were gentle and warm. Did he regret? No, it wasn’t a particularly regretful episode. He was just hesitant to show Obito his true feelings, because he was afraid of committing to the Slytherin in front of him.

“No,” Kakashi said truthfully. “I… I liked it.”

Obito’s eyes immediately lit up and a jubilant smile crossed his features. He was happy. He could be happy. They could be happy together. Kakashi let these thoughts run through his mind for a while. He took a deep breath before saying, “Can we take it slow?”

Obito’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“You know,” Kakashi’s pale face turned red. “If we were to… ah… date and stuff…” He turned redder as the smile on Obito’s face grew bigger.

“So we’re dating.”

“If… you want to.” Kakashi didn’t know why he was feeling so awkward. He scratched the back of his neck, feeling as though his face was about to be burnt off.

“Yeah, I mean, of course!” Obito looked positively radiant. “I like you. I just didn’t know you felt the same way.”

“I do.”

Obito emitted a loud sound that sounded like a cross between a bark, a squeal and a chicken being strangled. Kakashi watched, astonished, as Obito clutched his head with both hands and exclaimed, “Holy shit, he likes me.”

Kakashi looked down at his plate, a smile twitching at the corners of his lips. He brought his sandwich to his mouth, suddenly savouring its rich taste. He took another bite.

Obito had turned to him and was now looking at him fondly. A second later, when Kakashi dropped his sandwich, he reached forwards and gently swiped his thumb over the side of Kakashi’s mouth.

The Ravenclaw jerked back in shock as a warm tingle shot right through his chest.

Obito chuckled at Kakashi’s response and resumed eating his sandwich, acting like he hadn’t done anything that had sent a goddamn electrifying jolt right through his heart.

Kakashi gulped. This was going to get some getting used to.

They went for a short walk after lunch, strolling along the bridge, breathing in the fresh, chilly air and taking in their mesmerising winter surroundings.

"Do you want to go for the next Hogsmeade trip with me?" Obito asked, scratching the back of his head.

Kakashi smiled. "Sure," he responded.

Obito gave a loving smile back and took Kakashi’s hand in his. It was a simple act, an acknowledgement of Kakashi’s wish to ‘take it slow’. Kakashi didn’t know what he meant by that, but he decided he could at least give himself some time to get used to all this. Because Merlin’s pants, if Obito’s lips approached his again, he thought he’d probably combust from his exploding emotions.

The rest of the holidays zoomed by. Kakashi met up with the Slytherin sometimes, when he wasn’t trying to rush his homework for the start of school. Obito had been undeniably sweet towards him, and Kakashi often found himself wondering if he was the same person as the cocky, mean Slytherin who had teased him all throughout the past year.

On the first day of the new semester, Kakashi greeted his two friends with an enthusiastic hug. Rin noticed that he was looking considerably happier than usual and asked him what had happened over the holidays.

“You look like your parents finally gave in and got you that Firebolt II you always wanted for Christmas,” she remarked.

Kakashi simply shrugged, his smile never faltering from his face. The trio entered the Great Hall for breakfast. They’d arrived early that morning, together with the rest of the school. They sat down at the Ravenclaw table. There was loud chatter everywhere as the students relayed tales about their vacations to one another. Kakashi helped himself to some salad, listening to Rin’s recount of her trip to the Maldives, where her family had spent almost the entire Christmas holidays at. She reminisced with a misty look in her eyes about the sunny beaches, clear waters and warm temperatures. Kakashi smiled. It seemed like his friend had really enjoyed herself.

Tenzo hadn’t travelled anywhere, for he said his family was rather quiet and laid-back, preferring to stay at home and spend time with one another. His mother worked as a dentist in the muggle world, earning quite a decent amount of money, while his father was a journalist working for the Daily Prophet.

“My dad says the Lethifold business is getting rather serious,” said Tenzo. “He’s been put in charge of it. Mum doesn’t like it, but he’s assured her that it’s not really dangerous unless you’re faced with the real thing. Right now, he’s just going around to the killing sites and interviewing various people. He was just at Hogsmeade a few days back. I’m sure you’ve heard about the deaths of the two wizards.”

“What? Two wizards? At Hogsmeade?” Kakashi exclaimed in shock, his lettuce slipping off his spoon.

“Yeah,” said Tenzo, mildly surprised. “Haven’t you heard about the news of the two deaths at Hogsmeade? It was on the Boxing day issue of the Daily Prophet."

“I must have missed it,” Kakashi muttered as he recalled the day following Christmas, when he’d adamantly refused to go down for breakfast. He wasn’t able to receive his newspaper that day. “What happened?”

“They just vanished, like all those muggles, but of course, it’s slightly tougher to make two wizards disappear – and two highly qualified ones at that. That’s why the Ministry is certain it was the work of those Lethifolds. One was a professional dueller visiting the village and the other was the Honeydukes owner. You know, the one who went around looking for trolls and giants in his twenties?” Tenzo paused as he tried to recall the facts. “They went missing at around the same time. The Honeydukes owner’s wife woke up to an empty bed at six a.m. The dueller and his friend were walking through the village at dawn, when his friend left him near the woods for a while because he wanted to catch a glimpse of the Shrieking Shack. He came back to find that the wizard had disappeared. All their bags were at the exact spot he’d left him. Ministry officials have scoured the entire area for him but there’s not a trace of that guy.”

“Wow,” said Kakashi, his spoon still held out in front of him. “So, it’s all the work of the Lethifolds?”

“That’s what they presume,” Tenzo said. “Though it’s more or less confirmed. There have been sightings reported."

“Hogsmeade, though,” Rin piped in. “That’s so scary. It’s so close to Hogwarts.”

Kakashi remained silent. He had a sudden flashback of that cold afternoon down on the grounds, where he was cornered near the edge of the Dark forest by that creepy gamekeeper. If what Orochimaru had said was true, the Lethifolds weren’t simply close to Hogwarts, they were on the castle grounds. He decided it wouldn’t do anyone good to simply remain silent.

“Listen,” he said and Rin and Tenzo turned to him. “I think I saw a Lethifold in the Forbidden forest on the day we spied on the Gryffindors.”

Rin and Tenzo gaped at him.

“That was more than a month ago,” said Rin disbelievingly. “And you’re only saying this now?”

“I thought I was seeing wrong,” Kakashi admitted abashedly. “And that crazy gamekeeper was saying there were Lethifolds hiding in the forest – I didn’t want to agree with him!”

“But there were news of Lethifolds flying around after that day,” Rin said exasperatedly. “You could have alerted the teachers about it.”

“I didn’t think it was a big deal then,” Kakashi said.

“You didn’t think Lethifolds were a big deal?” Rin questioned sceptically.

There was a minute of silence as they resumed eating their meals. The three Ravenclaws agreed that after breakfast, they would go straight to Professor Namikaze and tell him about the Lethifold sightings in the forest. However, before any of them could finish their meals, Professor Tsunade stood up and went over to the podium. Those who had caught this movement, immediately hushed up and by the time their headmistress stood in front of the owl lecturn, the entire hall was quiet. Kakashi, Rin and Tenzo watched, looking as bewildered as the rest of their schoolmates. Their headmistress rarely addressed the whole school like this – she only made speeches at the start of the school year and at the end of it. Her expression was grim, as were those of the other teachers, and Kakashi guessed she wasn’t about to relay to them good news.

“May I have your attention please?” Professor Tsunade requested, rather unnecessarily, for the whole hall had already given her their fullest attention. “There have been light of terrible events happening around this area. I am sure many of you are fully aware of the very recent disappearances of muggles and wizards alike, which are all known to be the cause of Lethifolds.” A deafening silence ensued as everyone waited for Professor Tsunade to continue. “I have received news over the holidays that a colony of Lethifolds has been discovered in the Forbidden forest.”

A resounding gasp rippled through the four tables and panicked voices rose. Professor Tsunade raised a hand and everyone shushed.

“There is no need to panic,” she said calmly. “Hogwarts is working with the Ministry to rid these creatures from the school's premises. I have made special protection plans that have been set up around the castle during the holidays. As I speak, the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures is scouring the grounds for any sign of the creatures. There will also be occasional visits from the Auror office to make sure everything is kept in place. You will find that there will be some changes in the workings of the school and I apologise in advance for any inconvenience caused.

“Lethifolds are extremely dangerous creatures and I want each and every one of you to take the following points very seriously. These beasts are lethal – they feed on human flesh and there is only one way to defend yourselves against one. Like Dementors, Lethifolds can be repelled by patronuses. Hence, I have permitted Professor Uchiha to conduct special Defence Against the Dark Arts classes for third-years and above, during which, you will learn how to produce patronuses.”

Excited whispers erupted from the tables for a brief moment, before they subsided again as Professor Tsunade raised a hand.

“The patronus charm is an extremely advanced branch of magic, and I do not expect many to master producing a corporeal patronus after only a couple of lessons. This is perfectly fine, as these classes will merely serve to better equip yourself with the knowledge and skills needed to protect yourself should you find yourself in the presence of a Lethifold. It is extremely unlikely that you will, for I assure you that the school is well-protected. I must stress that you remain inside the castle at all times, unless an occasion permits you to venture out. Quidditch Captains are to restrict trainings to the minimum number of trainings per month– no more than that,” Professor Tsunade raised her voice when a few protests rang in the air. “Your safety is our number one priority. I will have a word with Professor Jiraiya to see if your Care of Magical Creatures classes can’t be taken indoors. Hogsmeade trips will be cancelled.” More indignant voices rose and Professor Tsunade tapped the edge of her podium.

“Silence!” she said in a booming voice. “You do not understand the severity of this situation. Lethifolds are carnivorous and highly dangerous creatures. They may appear harmless in appearance, but I assure you, you do not want to be in the presence of one.”

Silence weighed heavily in the Great Hall.

“To continue,” said Professor Tsunade, a tinge of irritation in her voice. “Since first- and second-years aren’t taking the special defence classes by Professor Uchiha, you will be accompanied by a teacher at all times; you will be chaperoned to all your classes. Everyone is advised to move around in groups, avoid going anywhere alone. You are to be back in your respective common rooms every evening by seven p.m., immediately after dinner, unless you have an Astronomy class, in which case, Professor Hyuuga will be escorting you back to your houses after class.

“You will find some form of protection set up at the entrance to your common rooms. I have written to all your parents, clearly explaining the situation to them. Should any of your parents wish to withdraw you from the school, please direct their letters to me and I will clearly explain the safety measures that have been put in place. That is all,” Professor Tsunade concluded her speech and took a step back. “Please go for your first lessons.”

She returned to the teachers’ table. A cacophony of noise rose slowly and everyone began to talk about the recent news. There was a lot to take in and most people were simply confused.

“That sounds pretty serious, doesn’t it?” Rin turned to Kakashi and Tenzo.

Tenzo was frowning, glancing over at the teachers’ table. “They know something.”

“Well, obviously they do,” said Rin, rolling her eyes. “Haven’t you been paying attention during the speech? Professor Tsunade said there are Lethifolds on the castle grounds?”

“I know that,” said Tenzo, looking slightly annoyed. “What I meant was, they’re hiding something from us. Don’t you find it a bit odd?”

“Find what odd?” said Rin blankly.

“Professor Tsunade mentioned something about the Auror office being involved in this.” Tenzo turned back to the teachers, who were all huddled in serious conversation. “There’s no reason for the Aurors to be involved in this, if this was a simple case of a mass influx of Lethifolds. They think there’s a Dark wizard behind all this.”

“Pfft,” snorted Rin. “What is this? The twentieth-century? There are no Dark wizards out there.”

“You don’t know that,” retorted Tenzo. “Anyone can turn bad.”

“He’s right,” Kakashi interjected. “We can’t tell for sure.”

“Alright, fine. Bloody hell, I’ve got a pair of pessimists as friends,” huffed Rin. Her expression brightened up a second later. “But wow. We’re learning about patronuses! I’ve always wanted to cast a patronus!”

“We probably won’t be able to cast a corporeal one,” mused Kakashi.

“We’re Ravenclaws, we can do anything.” Rin waved a haughty hand.

Kakashi, who had dug into his bag and pulled out his timetable, exclaimed enthusiastically, “Hey! I have double Defence with the Slytherins as my first period.”

Rin chortled. “Well you can imagine yourself kissing Obito. That’ll probably produce a corporeal patronus on your first try.”

Kakashi blinked, feeling his neck heat up. He awkwardly folded his timetable and put it back into his bag before taking a swig of his pumpkin juice. He gulped it down too fast and choked, coughing a little. Rin raised her eyebrows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thanks to you guys who took the time to leave kudos and nice comments! I keep saying this but they really do mean a lot. I was going to wait until at least this weekend before posting another chapter but your kind and encouraging words made me want to update as soon as possible. Thank you for reading! I hope this chapter didn’t disappoint <3


	6. Chapter 6

Rin chortled. “Well you can imagine yourself kissing Obito. That’ll probably produce a corporeal patronus on your first try.”

Kakashi blinked, feeling his neck heat up. He awkwardly folded his timetable and put it back into his bag before taking a swig of his pumpkin juice. He gulped it down too fast and choked, coughing a little. Rin raised her eyebrows.

Tenzo, who’d been completely oblivious to their conversation, piped up, “We’ve got double Defence with the Gryffindors first thing in the morning!” he told Rin.

“Well, you seem happy,” said Rin in surprise.

“I am,” Tenzo replied with a broad smile on his face. “Iruka sent me this really cute Pygmy Puff for Christmas! I was quite shocked when a huge cage came crashing into my window; the poor owl almost fainted from exhaustion. But Pygmy Puff's so cute! It’s up in my dorm with Pooti.”

“Pooti?” Rin raised her eyebrows.

“It’s my new cat,” Tenzo said happily. “Mum and dad bought me a new white cat. And it’s so lovely.”

The bell rang just then, signalling for the start of class. Tenzo got up immediately and bidding them a hasty goodbye, rushed off.

“You don’t think he’s replaced us with Iruka, do you? He didn’t even wait for me,” said Rin sadly.

Kakashi simply smiled, pleased that Iruka had managed to get Tenzo something that he really liked.

“Anyway,” said Rin, grabbing the strap of her bag and slinging it over her shoulder. “I have to go now. See you at lunch. Hope your patronus-casting goes well.”

“You too,” Kakashi returned and they split ways at the entrance, heading off in different directions.

Kakashi arrived at Classroom 3C; he saw that Professor Uchiha was already at his desk and a few of his classmates had sat down. He went over to his usual seat, a wide smile lighting up his face when Obito appeared at the doorway. The Slytherin sat down beside him and they greeted each other.

“Alright,” Professor Uchiha said when everyone had arrived. “Settle down.”

The noise level ceased.

“Today will be your first lesson on patronuses. I have been advised by the headmistress to dedicate four hours’ worth of lessons to equipping you with this defensive skill,” Professor Uchiha said distastefully, as though he didn’t agree with the decision. “A patronus charm is a very difficult charm to cast and most of you won’t be able to create a corporeal patronus by the end of this lesson. Not to fear, this does not mean that you are weak or that you are incapable – although that might well be the reason too – but this is NEWT level of teaching and I do not expect fourth-years to be able to master such an advanced spell. Of course, such a feat is indeed possible, but let’s not have such high hopes.”

Professor Uchiha waved his wand and the screen at the front of the classroom rolled down. The projector turned on, showing what looked like a thick, velvety black cloak hovering a few inches above the ground.

“This is a Lethifold,” he began lecturing. “It is classified by the Ministry of Magic as a ‘known wizard killer’ that is ‘impossible to train or domesticate’. It has been theorised that Lethifolds are related to Dementors as they share a similar appearance, the only difference being that a Dementor has a human skeleton underneath its cloak and hence, resembles the human form. It is merely a theory, and there are many things that set a Dementor and a Lethifold apart. For instance, a Dementor has the ability to drastically drop the temperatures of its immediate surroundings and is capable of bringing out the worst memories in a human, evoking a deep sense of fear and despair.

A Lethifold, in contrast, has no control over abstract things like emotions. It affects its victim in a purely physical way. Lethifolds are commonly found in tropical areas, though they are also known to be able to survive in colder places. They are known for gliding over the ground in a silent manner, successfully approaching their prey without letting them know of their presence, and then, enveloping the human with its body, asphyxiating them to death. The Lethifold will then consume the dead prey wholly, without any traces of the victim left behind.”

“Now.” Professor Uchiha rapped his wand against the projector and the images vanished; the screen shot up. “We will practise saying the incantation. When you say it out loud, I want you to picture the happiest memory you have. Do not settle for anything less, go for your happiest memory. Repeat after me: Expecto Patronum.”

“Expecto Patronum,” they chorused together.

“With more gusto,” Professor Uchiha instructed. “Expecto Patronum.”

“Expecto Patronum.”

He half-smiled. “Good. Now that you have the incantation in place, I want you to take out your wands.”

He waited as there was a flurry of movement. Wands appeared from beneath robes, inside pockets and under sleeves.

“First, I will demonstrate a corporeal patronus charm. This is ideally, what you should be aiming for.” Professor Uchiha held his wand out in front of him. “Expecto Patronum.”

What looked like a long, tangled, silvery rope emerged from the tip of his wand. Professor Uchiha waved it, almost lazily, to the side and the rope glided in a magically elegant manner around the classroom, weaving through the awestruck heads. Everyone watched, mesmerised, at the patronus casting a happy, silver glow over them as it passed over the top of their heads. The rope-like creature reached Kakashi and he saw that it was a Runespoor, a magical beast that looked like a three-headed snake. It glided over to Obito and disappeared.

“Each patronus,” Professor Uchiha spoke, bringing all their attention back to him. “Will take on a different form. It will take the form of either a magical beast, or a common animal. Whatever form it takes, it will reveal the core substance of what lies deep in your heart. Simply said, your patronus is a projection of your soul.”

“A projection of your soul? Fugaku’s a three-headed snake then,” came a whisper behind Kakashi. A soft snigger followed.

“You will now raise your wands and shout the incantation together. We will try this until some form of incorporeal patronus is created.”

Everybody held their wands high in front of them.

“Expecto Patronum,” drawled Professor Uchiha.

“Expecto Patronum,” they repeated.

Nothing happened.

“Yes, I expected that,” said Professor Uchiha drily. “Are all of you thinking of your happiest memory?”

Kakashi flushed. He’d completely forgotten to think about his happiest memory. He thought of something to focus on; the day he’d received top marks in Charms sounded good enough.

“Expecto Patronum,” he said.

Nothing erupted from his wand. He looked at it rather dismally – was the memory too weak?

“Expecto Patronum!” said Obito beside him.

A silver streak of some vapour-like substance slunk out of the tip of his wand. He turned to Kakashi, his jubilance apparent on his face. “Did you see that?” he said excitedly.

“Very good, Obito. Ten points to Slytherin,” came Professor Uchiha’s voice.

“But sir,” said the same voice that was casting snide remarks about their Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher a while ago. “That’s unfair. I produced something too.”

“Pity I didn’t see it,” Professor Uchiha said coldly.

The boy behind Kakashi muttered, “Biased bigot.”

Kakashi turned to Obito, happy that he’d managed to produce something, but a little envious too. “What did you think about?” he asked.

Obito turned to him. With a broad smile on his face and his twinkling eyes lighting up, he said, “You.”

“Me?” Kakashi asked in surprise.

“Is that so much of a surprise?” Obito chuckled. “I’m guessing you weren’t thinking of me.”

Kakashi blushed.

“You could try.” The Slytherin winked.

Kakashi turned back to the front. He raised his wand in front of him and thought of Obito’s happy smiles. He thought of the white snow dusting the top of his head and the boyish laughter of his. “Expecto Patronum.”

A small silver wisp fluttered out, but it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

“I did it!” Kakashi said in awe. “I produced something.”

“Well done,” Obito gave a laugh. His merry eyes twinkling, he raised his own wand and said, “Expecto Patronum.”

Something bigger emerged and Kakashi thought he could see some feathers. “Try again,” he urged. “I think I see something.”

Obito tried again, but this time, only a long rope of silver came out. “This is tiring,” he remarked, his shoulders slumping.

“Remember, concentrate on your happiest memory,” Professor Uchiha called out.

They attempted a few more times, not producing more than translucent smoke. The first corporeal patronus was created by a quiet, mysterious Ravenclaw boy, who sat right at the back of the room. A doe emerged from the tip of his outstretched wand and everyone stopped what they were doing to watch with envy and admiration as the elegant animal pranced around them. The silver doe disappeared seconds later.

“Very good, Shin,” said Professor Uchiha. “Ten points to Ravenclaw.”

Shin gave a small smile. They resumed their attempts.

“Expecto Patronum,” Obito said for the thirteenth time.

This time, a large, feathered creature burst from the end of his wand and it soared with a graceful elegance through the air. Kakashi watched, his mouth open, as the bald eagle circled around them. Like Shin’s, Obito’s patronus did not last for more than a couple of seconds, but it was apparent to everyone that it was in its corporeal form.

“Excellent, Obito,” Professor Uchiha gave him a proud smile. “Another ten points to Slytherin.”

Obito slipped into a broad smile, evidently pleased with himself. Kakashi looked at his wand, wondering why he couldn’t create anything more than a few wisps of silvery smoke. He tried again, his frustration growing when nothing else emerged.

“I think you’re letting your annoyance get in the way,” Obito said gently. He’d been watching Kakashi’s attempts. “Try to focus on your happy memory instead.”

Kakashi sighed and tried again. Nothing came out. “I give up,” he said, burying his face in his hands.

“Come on.” Obito placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s really tough magic. You just need a bit more practice. I’m sure you’ll be able to produce one in the next lesson.”

As Obito spoke those words, the bell rang, signalling for the end of class. Kakashi sighed again and grabbed his bag, leaving the classroom once Professor Uchiha had dismissed them. He looked at his timetable – he had a break right before lunch. He wasn’t in the mood to study and besides, it was the first day of school after the holidays – he didn’t have any homework yet. He bid Obito a quick goodbye, the smile on the Slytherin’s face faltering a little when Kakashi turned down his offer to walk him to his common room. Kakashi made his way up the Ravenclaw tower. He noted a strange silver glow loitering near the entrance and emerged at the small balcony to see that there was a patronus in the form of a doe, which most likely belonged to his Head of House.

So that's what Professor Tsunade meant by protection, he thought.

He stared at the patronus for a while, taking in its solid form, before entering the Ravenclaw common room. He saw Konan sitting on one of the sofas, chattering with a few sixth-years. He passed her by, heading towards the stone spiral staircase that would lead him to the dormitories.

“Oh hey, Kakashi,” Konan called out to him and he whirled around, facing his Captain.

“I’ve drawn up our new practice schedule. Unfortunately, we can only train once a week, due to the whole Lethifold business.” She gave a sour look. “So, I’ve decided to make it every Saturday. It won’t interfere with your schoolwork and we can manage to hold our practices in the daytime. The Hogsmeade trip’s cancelled, so there won’t be any clashes.”

Kakashi nodded.

“Oh and I want you to spy on the Slytherins tomorrow. They’ll be holding their practice at six. Unfortunately for them, the weekend slots were already taken up by us and the other houses, so they’ve received special permission from their head, Professor Uchiha, to split their weekly two-hour practices into an hour each on two days,” Konan said. “Keep an eye on Inuzuka Hana. I heard one of their Chaser’s got a new Firebolt II too.”

“A Firebolt II?” Kakashi moaned with envy. “Who is it?”

“I dunno,” she shrugged. “You find out tomorrow. They’ll be a tough opponent, the Slytherins.”

Kakashi nodded and turned away, making his way up the stone staircase and entering his dormitory. He plopped himself on his bed and after a minute of staring at the blue canopy of his poster bed, he drew out his wand and pointed it in front of him. He conjured up the memory of Obito’s confession that cold day in the Quidditch pitch locker room.

“Expecto Patronum!” he cried.

Nothing but a small silvery vapour was emitted. He grunted in frustration.

 _“Do not settle for anything less, go for your happiest memory,”_ Professor Uchiha’s words rang in his mind.

He lifted his wand in front of him again, pointing it determinedly at the bronze Ravenclaw crest embroidered to the inside of his canopy. He closed his eyes and brought up that sinful memory of Christmas day, when he was wrapped in Obito’s embrace, their lips locked and his heart palpitating in his chest. Kakashi let that warm trickle spread across his abdomen and he felt his heart starting to race. He opened his eyes, and with the image of that magical, surreal Christmas night flooding into his mind, shouted, “Expecto Patronum!”

A long, thin rope slithered out of his wand. It was hard to tell what it was, but Kakashi thought he caught a glimpse of an animal that greatly resembled Professor Uchiha’s patronus. The silver snake dissolved into nothingness a moment later, and Kakashi lay on his bed, panting from the effort it took him to cast that momentary charm.

_“Simply said, your patronus is a projection of your soul.”_

***

Kakashi woke up to a slight burning smell. He sniffed groggily, before looking down at his chest, where the small wafts of smoke seemed to be coming from. He saw that his wand, which he was gripping loosely to his chest, was singeing a hole in his white shirt. Kakashi yelped when he felt a sudden burn on his chest and brought the wand away. He groaned, inspecting the reddened skin that was peeking through the blackened hole at the front of his school shirt. He knew better than to sleep with his wand, but it somehow slipped his mind when he decided to take a nap before lunch. He got up, shrugging out of his school robes and unbuttoning his shirt. He reached down into his trunk and pulled out a fresh new shirt before putting it on. Kakashi stared at the alarm clock on his bedside table – it was five minutes to lunch. He grabbed his things, slung his robes over his shoulder, and headed out of the Ravenclaw tower.

He entered the Great Hall, spotting Tenzo and Rin immediately, and approached them to find that they were deep in conversation. Kakashi sat down, listening to them talk about their recent Defence Against the Dark Arts class and the patronus Tenzo had casted.

“You were able to produce a corporeal patronus, Tenzo?” asked Kakashi, deeply impressed.

“He’s the only one in the class to do it,” Rin said proudly as she reached forward to ruffle Tenzo’s hair.

Tenzo leant back, cheeks flushed from the praise. “No, I’m not. Iruka said he was sure something came out of his wand, but it disappeared less than a second later. He said it looked like a dog.”

“It’s probably just a badly-shaped wisp of smoke,” dismissed Rin. Tenzo looked like he was about to say something, but the girl cut him off, “Anyway, did you see Professor Uchiha’s patronus?”

“Yeah, it was a Runespoor,” Kakashi nodded.

Rin chuckled. “I always thought people who casted snakes were dodgy.”

“It’s not technically a snake,” Tenzo corrected.

“So it’s a magical creature that resembles a snake,” said Rin. “Big difference. Though now I know why he’s the head of Slytherin. All bad wizards have some affiliation with snakes.”

Tenzo gasped suddenly. “You don’t think he’s…”

“He’s what?” Rin questioned.

“The one who’s been setting all those Lethifolds on people?” finished Tenzo.

The two of them shared a dark look.

Kakashi shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Snakes can’t be all that bad,” he said.

“Ever heard of the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets? And Voldemort’s pet, Nagini?” Rin asked.

Kakashi bit his lip.

“What’s your patronus, Kakashi?” Tenzo asked suddenly.

“I couldn’t create one,” he lied.

Tenzo nodded and they left the subject thereafter. When the bell rang, they got up to go for their respective classes.

“Hey, Tenzo,” Kakashi placed a hand on the younger boy’s arm to stop him from scurrying off.

The third-year raised his eyebrows in question.

“Mind going down with me to the pitch tomorrow evening? Konan wants me to watch the Slytherins play.”

Tenzo checked his schedule. “What time?” he asked.

“Six.”

“Six? We have a curfew at seven,” he said confusedly.

“Yeah, they split their training sessions up. Come on, I’ll be lonely.” Kakashi pouted.

Tenzo blinked and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I guess I can spare an hour. I don’t have anything on anyway.”

“Thanks.” Kakashi smiled at him before heading off to class.

It was his last class for the day and one of the rare days when he could finish his school day early. He set off to Herbology, hoping that they wouldn’t have to do anything particularly nasty, for he didn’t think his stomach would be able to hold down his lunch. Unfortunately for him, Professor Utatane set them up to collecting Bubotuber pus, and by the end of the lesson, he found the entire front of his robes splattered with stinky pus.

“Oh, Kakashi,” Professor Utatane called him as he rushed past her, wanting to get to his dormitory as fast as possible so that he could take a nice shower and change out of his disgusting robes.

“Yes?” He went back to the front of Professor Utatane’s table.

“I have marked your previous Herbology report and I am pleased to say that you have attained an Outstanding for it.” She beamed at him. “You have been progressing very well in my classes and I’m glad to see that you are gaining an affinity with the subject.”

“Thank you, professor,” he said.

***

Kakashi awoke the next morning, feeling completely exhausted, for he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep. He’d dreamt of Lethifolds and snakes chasing him in the Forbidden forest, and he felt completely restless. He dragged himself through his lessons, barely registering anything and yawning so frequently, he almost felt like his head was about to be ripped into two. It didn’t help the fact that he had extremely taxing subjects for the whole day: Ancient Runes, followed by Transfiguration, lunch, History of Magic, and lastly, Defence Against the Dark Arts. By the time he reached Defence Against the Dark Arts, he was completely mentally drained.

He arrived at Classroom 3C just before the lesson started, giving Obito a small smile before settling down next to him. Professor Uchiha paced around the front of the classroom, launching into a monotone recount of the previous lesson’s objectives as he did so.

“Many of you were unable to create a patronus on your first try. That is acceptable, seeing as you’re still too mediocre to fully master this highly advanced spell. I do not expect many more to be able to cast the spell today, but I do not want this to dishearten you. You are still expected to give your best effort, and if I catch anyone slacking off, or half-heartedly uttering the incantation, I will make sure you have a very miserable rest of the week with the large amount of extra work I will give you.” He stopped pacing and whipped around to face the class, his cold eyes sweeping over them. “To recap, a patronus is conjured when one thinks of his happiest memory, or something that makes him really happy, and says the right incantation. A corporeal patronus is the full form of the charm, and usually takes the form of a magical, or non-magical creature. Patronuses can be used to ward off Dementors and Lethifolds.”

A staccato of noise rose in the classroom as everyone began chanting the incantation. Kakashi looked down at his wand, thinking back at the words Rin had said the previous day.

_“All bad wizards have affiliations with snakes.”_

Was he a bad wizard? He liked to tease his friends a lot and okay, maybe he did misbehave sometimes due to his temper, but he thought he was a pretty decent person. A warm hand rested on his shoulder and he turned to his left quickly to see Obito staring at him.

“Hey, you okay?” the Slytherin asked in a concerned manner.

“Yeah, just zoned out for a bit,” Kakashi fibbed. He cleared his throat and helded his wand out. “Expecto patronum.”

A small wisp of smoke erupted from the tip of it.

“Try again,” Obito encouraged. “That was close.”

No, it wasn’t, Kakashi thought. He had deliberately thought of a less-happy memory, in hopes that his patronus wouldn’t take its form during the lesson. He wasn’t sure he wanted to make it known to his classmates that his patronus was a snake. He continued with his half-hearted efforts several more times, Obito continuing to stubbornly cheer him on after he produced nothing but a miserable trail of smoke. Kakashi looked around him; a few more people had managed to create corporeal patronuses, and everyone paused to look whenever a delighted squeal was sounded and some form of creature hopped between them. Right then, Tokuma shouted gleefully when a turtle emerged from his wand. The shelled animal moved with a certain grace and speed that looked oddly contradictory with its appearance. Everyone oohed and aahed.

Kakashi turned back silently and stared at his wand, which he’d placed on his desk. Taking his silence for discouragement at his inability to create a corporeal patronus, Obito picked up Kakashi’s wand and handed it to him.

“Just keep trying, Kakashi.” He smiled. “You’ll eventually get it.”

Kakashi took his own wand from Obito’s hand, feeling touched that the Slytherin believed in him so much, but also feeling rather guilty for he wasn’t trying his best to produce a patronus. Professor Uchiha approached them just then, his arms folded beneath his robes and his eyes staring disdainfully down at him. Kakashi gulped.

“I have been observing your so-called efforts, Kakashi,” Professor Uchiha said in a sneering voice.

“I’ll keep trying, sir,” Kakashi muttered.

“You will, or else you’ll find yourself unable to breathe under six feet of parchment. I’m sure you do not want to write about the long history of the patronus charm and how it was created?”

“No, sir,” murmured Kakashi.

“Then, you will put in the right effort.” Professor Uchiha glared at him. “And might I remind you that nearly half your classmates have been able to produce a corporeal patronus, most of whom are in your house. I am observing that you are becoming less fitting of a Ravenclaw as each day passes.”

Kakashi clenched his fist around his wand, Professor Uchiha giving him one more condescending look before skulking off. “I hate him,” he spat.

“Well, his patronus is a three-headed snake,” Obito chukled. “That should tell you something about him.”

“Even you think that way,” said Kakashi crossly. Before he could stop himself, he flung his wand out violently, loudly uttering, “Expecto Patronum!”

A long, thick snake burst out from his wand, its bedazzling silver scales catching everyone’s attention. It slithered in smooth, hypnotising actions, slowly wafting across the classroom and disappearing once it reached the corner of it.

“My patronus is a goddamn snake. What does that tell you about me?” he hissed at Obito, who was looking rather bewildered.

Everyone was now staring at him, some with a sort of weird fascination, and others with mild curiosity. There weren’t any hostile, animus looks shot in his direction, but Kakashi felt outcasted just the same.

“That is enough for today,” came Professor Uchiha’s voice suddenly, followed by the timely ring of the bell. “You are dismissed.”

Without sparing anyone a glance, Kakashi gathered his things and sped out of the classroom, ignoring Obito persistently calling his name.

Kakashi felt extremely self-conscious throughout the entire day. People were still generally friendly towards him, but he still couldn’t help but feel as though they were giving him a curious once-over, as though wondering what it was about his personality that greatly resembled a poisonous snake.

He went down for an early dinner, remembering that he had to watch the Slytherins practise. Very few people were in the hall, for it was still half past five. Kakashi hurriedly scarfed his dinner down with Tenzo. Rin had joined them and was idly completing her meal.

“Were you able to produce a patronus today, Kakashi?” Tenzo asked jovially as he drank his soup.

“Yeah,” Kakashi deadpanned. “It was an adder.”

“No way,” Rin gaped, dropping her Potions book, which she’d been holding up and reading. “Your patronus is a snake?”

“Yes,” Kakashi said in a tone that challenged her to say more.

He saw Tenzo give Rin a silent look and the latter shut up. He went on with his meal, choosing to ignore the pointed looks his friends were giving each other.

“Kakashi,” Tenzo said suddenly and Kakashi looked up, waiting for him to continue. “We’re sorry if you feel offended by what we said yesterday.” He looked at Rin, who rolled her eyes, but nodded. “You know we didn’t mean it. We were just joking around.”

“Yeah,” Rin pitched in. “Snakes are cool patronuses, actually.”

Kakashi looked between his friends, before setting his spoon down into his half-finished bowl of soup. “I’m heading down to the pitch. You can come later, Tenzo.”

Tenzo and Rin exchanged panicked looks. The former immediately got up. “No, I’ll come with you. I’m just about finished with my meal, anyway.”

Kakashi looked down at Tenzo’s half-eaten meal and cocked an eyebrow. The third-year took his arm and determinedly clung to it. Kakashi sighed, before he led him out of the Great Hall. Tenzo chatted with him the whole way down to the pitch, pleasantly ignoring Kakashi’s sullen mood. Kakashi was already used to Tenzo’s tendency of ignoring things he’d rather avoid, and after a while, gave in to the constant stream of chatter.

“Yeah, you should. You probably don’t want to let Iruka’s gift die,” Kakashi said.

“That would break his heart,” Tenzo said worriedly.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

“He has such a gentle heart,” explained Tenzo. “He loves all things nature, so Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology are his favourite subjects. He’s really good at them too.”

“How do you find Iruka?” Kakashi asked casually.

“It’s like we’re soulmates,” said Tenzo excitedly. “We have a lot of things in common – from our favourite Quidditch team to our favourite Bertie Bott's beans flavours. We even like the same wizarding bands.”

Kakashi smiled. “Seems like you’re getting along well with him.”

“He’s very fun to hang out with,” Tenzo said, turning towards the pitch, for the Slytherins had now mounted their brooms and officially commenced practice. “You might think he’s quiet, but he actually talks quite– hey, is that a Firebolt II?”

Kakashi whipped his head in the direction Tenzo was pointing at. A green blur whipped through the air in high speed, the broomstick he was perched on glinting under the orange rays of the late afternoon sun. The figure made a turn and stopped mid-air, hovering a great distance from Tenzo’s and Kakashi’s side of the stands. Kakashi recognised the iconic shape of the fastest broom in the world.

“It is. Konan told me there’s someone with a Firebolt II in Slytherin. I wonder who that is…” He squinted at the Slytherin player, who had his back facing them. Kakashi recognised the messy black hair, the strong, lean stature and the characteristic jerk of his head as he flicked his hair out of the way. “It’s Obito,” he said in surprise.

“Really?” Tenzo was now squinting beside him.

“Yes, I recognise his–” he stopped himself before he could let slip that he was incredibly familiar with all the small details of the Slytherin.

“Huh,” said Tenzo, who appeared to not notice Kakashi’s abrupt silence. “He must be filthy rich.”

Kakashi blinked and instantly brought his eyes down to stare at the gold peeking out from under his robe’s sleeve. He could feel the heavy weight of the watch Obito had given him, as well as its smooth metallic surface touching his skin. He wondered exactly how rich the Slytherin was.

He turned to see Tenzo staring at him with a strange look on his face.

“What?” Kakashi asked.

Tenzo turned back towards the Slytherins. “You must really like him.” There was minimal bitterness in his tone. Either Tenzo didn’t feel that much for Kakashi anymore, or he was good at hiding it.

“How did you arrive at that conclusion?” he muttered.

“Come on.” Kakashi chanced a glance to his right to see that his younger friend was giving him a small smile. “If it were anyone else, you’d be cursing under your breath and moaning about how the world is unfair, since they have a Firebolt II and you don’t.”

When Kakashi didn’t say anything, Tenzo gave a short laugh. They sank into a comfortable silence thereafter, watching the Slytherins play. Kakashi was thrilled to find that Slytherin were great players, for they desperately needed them to beat the Gryffindors in their next match. They weren’t placing much hope in the Hufflepuffs and hence, were actually betting on the Slytherins to give Gyffindor their first defeat, so that Ravenclaw could stand a chance to win the Quidditch cup. Kakashi found his eyes drawn to Obito after a while, and he was sure it wasn’t because of the Firebolt II.

Obito’s reflexes were good, better than Kakashi’s, and he was quick with his decisions, too. Kakashi found himself admiring the Slytherin’s form and physique, his body weaving fluidly between the many players and the robes clinging to him when the wind blew a certain direction. Kakashi gulped as Obito sped near them, catching sight of the drops of sweat lining his face, and the messed up, windswept hair that was now perched on top of his head like a bird’s nest. He noticed how Obito’s lips were slightly parted whenever he anticipated the Quaffle, how his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down whenever he tried to score, and how he licked his lips very often, perhaps as a result of them drying up faster in the cold air. Obito spun around, a small, triumphant smile appearing on his lips when his teammate scored a goal and caught sight of Kakashi, his eyes widening slightly in surprise before they folded into two crescents as his smile broadened. Kakashi returned a smile back and gave a little wave, his heart skipping a beat when Obito returned one cheerily, the beam on his face positively glowing.

An hour went by fast, and Kakashi and Tenzo got up from their seats when the Slytherin players started packing their equipment. The Ravenclaws were shivering, for it had gotten colder as dusk drew upon them. They made their way down the stands and walked along the edge of the pitch, hearing the Slytherin Captain’s loud voice telling his teammates to head back to the castle for it was already seven p.m. Kakashi walked slowly, his eyes on a particular face hidden amongst the crowd of Slytherin players. He caught Obito’s eye and the other signalled for him to stay back for a bit.

Kakashi lingered back and when Tenzo turned around to question him, he said, “You go ahead first.”

Tenzo looked towards the centre of the pitch, seeing a lone Slytherin pacing about as his teammates strolled out of the Quidditch pitch, and nodded, turning and making his way back to the castle with his hands in his pockets.

Kakashi walked over to Obito quickly, ignoring a few Slytherins who were casting him hostile glances. He guessed they must’ve heard the news about him officially going out with Obito. Kakashi had half-expected that they wouldn’t take it well – it was no secret that the Slytherins considered anyone not from their house to be beneath them, especially when Obito was hailed as some sort of a leader in their year.

“Hey,” Obito greeted Kakashi with a bright smile once he was in front of him, completely unbothered by the unhappy stares cast in their direction. It made sense – with Obito’s social standing, nobody would dare question his decisions no matter how displeased they were with them.

Kakashi shook his head lightly and returned Obito’s smile. “You got yourself a Firebolt II.” He indicated the golden broomstick the latter was clutching.

“Yeah.” Obito looked down at it. “My parents gave it to me as a Christmas present. My old one had faulty brakes.”

Kakashi nodded, thinking Obito’s family must be quite well off to be able to afford a brand new broom for a mild case of faulty brakes. Most people would simply replace the brakes.

“You’ve been avoiding me.” His tone was casual, but his eyes were sad. “Why?”

“Avoiding you?” murmured Kakashi. “What do you mean?”

“Well.” Obito shifted his weight to his other foot. Kakashi could see that this was bothering him a fair bit. “You always speed off somewhere after our Defence classes.”

Kakashi bit his lip. It was true that he’d been heading off elsewhere after their Defence Against the Dark Arts classes, abandoning Obito without an explanation as to why he did so. However, it wasn’t because he wanted to avoid him, not entirely.

“It’s not because of you,” he clarified. “It’s just…” He struggled to communicate his feelings across.

“The patronuses?” Obito prompted.

The Ravenclaw nodded.

“Are you upset over the fact that you couldn’t produce one on your first day, or that it takes the form of a snake?” Obito asked softly.

Kakashi was surprised. Obito seemed to understand him well.

“Both,” he spoke eventually, averting his eyes out of embarrassment, for it sounded foolish admitting it out loud. “I was just being stupid.”

“You can talk to me about it.” Obito stepped closer and peered into Kakashi’s downcast eyes.

“Well, first of all, I was slightly disappointed that I couldn’t create a corporeal patronus, since a few of my classmates could do it,” he admitted ashamedly, biting his bottom lip. He sounded like a brat. “And when I found out mine was a snake,” he continued. “It just made it worse. All everyone’s talking about nowadays is how evil a wizard has to be to be able to create a snake. They even suspected Professor Uchiha to be the person behind the Lethifold attacks simply because his patronus is a Runespoor. And now that my patronus is revealed to be a snake,” he paused before saying. “Everyone thinks it’s me.”

“No one thinks it’s you, Kakashi,” Obito quickly rebutted.

Kakashi looked up at the Slytherin.

“No one thinks it’s you behind all these attacks. And they’re not thinking bad about you, either.”

“I just…” Kakashi traced his foot on the ground. “I don’t like my patronus much,” he said after a while.

Obito smiled and took Kakashi’s hand. “We can’t choose our patronuses. If anything, I think a snake’s pretty cool.”

“I think yours is cooler,” Kakashi smiled, taking in the warmth of Obito’s hand over his own. “It’s an eagle.”

Obito’s eyes suddenly widened. “Your patronus is a snake,” he said a little bit loudly.

Kakashi frowned at him. “Yeah, thanks? I can’t really forget that, can I?”

“No, wait. Your patronus is a snake, and mine is an eagle.“ Obito’s lips curled into a wide grin, “Come on, Kakashi. Aren’t you supposed to be the genius here?”

Kakashi was still frowning, but then it dawned on him. “Slytherin and Ravenclaw,” he trailed off.

“Exactly!” Obito exclaimed. “Were you thinking of me when you conjured your patronus? Does your happiest memory involve me?” he teased, still grinning.

Kakashi could feel his face heat up. He hadn’t thought of that possibility since he’d been busy worrying about what others might think of his patronus.

Obito chuckled and pulled Kakashi closer. “Because mine does.” He raised a hand and brushed the Ravenclaw’s silver bangs out of the way.

Kakashi gulped, taking in their close proximity.

Obito looked like he wanted to kiss him for a moment, but then he shook his head faintly and melted into a warm smile instead. “Wanna go for a ride?” he gestured at his Firebolt II.

Kakashi blinked. “It’s five past seven. We should’ve been in the castle five minutes ago.”

“A few more minutes won’t hurt.” Obito’s eyes twinkled mischievously. “Besides, are you sure you want to pass the chance to ride on a Firebolt II?”

Kakashi bit his bottom lip, obviously torn. After a brief moment of contemplation, in which he reasoned that he was already late anyway, he said, “Alright.”

Obito’s smile broadened and he slipped the broom in between his legs. He patted the part of the broom behind him. “Get on.”

“We’re riding it together?” Kakashi asked.

Obito shrugged. “I haven’t insured my broom yet.”

What a lie, thought Kakashi, thinking back at the daring stunts he had managed to execute during practice. Still, he moved over to mount the broom behind Obito, swallowing a little before placing both his hands tentatively on either side of Obito’s waist. A low chuckle sounded from the Slytherin in front of him.

“Is that how you grip your broom?” Obito teased. “I’m surprised you haven’t fallen off your broom, Kakashi.”

With an annoyed grunt, Kakashi slid closer to Obito, his chest pressing against the Slytherin’s warm back as he wrapped his arms around Obito’s firm waist. He could sense the Slytherin grinning and a smile appeared on his face as well.

Obito kicked off and they slowly rose up. The Firebolt II moved silently and effortlessly through the air. Its swerves were neat and much less jerky than all the other brooms, and there was a low vibration felt around the handle that suggested it had the power to move at extremely high speeds. Obito did not accelerate, however, choosing instead to waft along at a comfortable pace, circling around the circumference of the Quidditch pitch. Kakashi eventually leant the side of his head on Obito’s back, watching the small remnants of the day streaking across the sky like trails of gold and pink powder. Darkness prevailed, covering the huge castle in an overbearing shadow. The air was cold, though it was on the verge of getting warmer, and the snow all around them was beginning to shimmer as it melted away with the harshest period of winter. Kakashi loved this time of the day and he thought it was made perfect with the quality time he got to spend with Obito. He closed his eyes, feeling the light wisps of air fluttering against his lashes.

All too soon, they were descending, and Kakashi opened his eyes to find that the sky was already fully dark. Obito landed gently, their feet lightly touching the soft turf of the pitch. Kakashi released his hold on Obito reluctantly, watching as the Slytherin slung the broomstick over his shoulder and turned to him. He held out a hand.

Kakashi took it. They walked back to the castle together, the pair conversing lightly on their way back, still slightly giddy from their recent flight. Up close, Kakashi noticed that Obito looked tired; the low light hitting his face at unnatural angles and accentuating the shadows under his eyes. Kakashi supposed it must be because he had Quidditch practice after a long day of school. He felt bad that he had just taken more of Obito’s precious time and he wondered if there was any way he could make it up to him.

“Are you hungry? I know you just had dinner two hours ago, but–”

“I didn’t.”

“What?” Kakashi turned to him in shock, nearly tripping as they climbed up the stairs to the castle.

“I didn’t have dinner,” said Obito tiredly. “I was too busy completing my homework for tomorrow.” He gave a slight yawn. “I have Astronomy later this evening, so I didn’t think I’d be able to complete it tonight.”

“But, you must be terribly hungry,” Kakashi said, feeling upset for the other boy.

Obito gave him a reassuring smile. “It’s not that bad. I had a heavy lunch.”

“Still.” Kakashi bit his lip. His eyes lit up once he thought of a good idea. “Say, want to head down to the kitchens?” he asked excitedly.

Obito looked over at him in surprise, laughing when he saw the eager look on the Ravenclaw’s face. “We can’t go in there,” he reminded him.

“We can. There’s a secret passageway that someone told me about. The kitchen’s run by house elves and they won’t report us to anyone. Also, I heard they’re super willing to load you with all kinds of food,” Kakashi persuaded.

“I’m not sure…” Obito said. His stomach gave a loud rumble just then. “But it wouldn’t hurt to have some treacle tarts.” He mused on the idea for a while, before mischievously grinning. “You’re such a bad influence on me, Kakashi.” He shook his head. “Lead the way.”

Kakashi chuckled and pulled Obito by the hand in the other direction, away from their common rooms. They had already entered the castle and if they were able to move quietly enough, they would be able to nip some things from the kitchen and make their way stealthily back to their common rooms. The corridors were deserted and there was an eerie atmosphere about. No one was walking around since everyone had been instructed to be at their respective common rooms by seven. Even the ghosts seemed to have vanished somewhere.

“It should be this way,” Kakashi said, rounding a corner. “We can get to the kitchens faster if we go by the West Wing.”

“No one is going anywhere,” a loud voice called out from behind them.

Kakashi’s heart stopped and he and Obito turned around to see the caretaker’s short, angry stature walking briskly towards them.

“Run!” Obito suddenly cried as he grabbed Kakashi’s hand and whirled him around.

The pair of them sped away, ignoring the loud “Hey!” behind them as they sprinted down the corridor, their robes whipping back behind their legs and their loud footsteps echoing off the walls.

“This way,” Obito panted as he guided Kakashi into a secret passageway, his hand wrapped around the Ravenclaw’s wrist. The stone wall closed and they stood behind it, panting heavily, their ragged breaths amplified in the small, narrow space.

“What is this place?” Kakashi asked a moment later.

“A shortcut to the dungeons and the Slytherin common room. I use it to retrieve something I’ve forgotten, or just to avoid the crowd in general,” Obito replied, still a little out of breath.

“Won’t Chiyo find us here?” asked Kakashi worriedly. He peered uncertainly at the stone wall, through which they had just came through, as though it would shift at any moment to reveal the livid-looking caretaker.

Obito shook his head. “No. She doesn’t know this corridor exists. Not many Slytherins do too. I only found out about it because Anko brought me here once and she–” Obito stopped mid-sentence. He awkwardly brought a hand up to scratch the back of his neck.

“She what?” prompted Kakashi. An unsettling feeling stirred in his chest.

“It’s nothing.” Obito averted his eyes.

There was a few moments of silence, during which, he had his head slightly inclined towards the secret entrance.

“I don’t hear Chiyo around anymore,” he said, still not looking at Kakashi. “I think we can continue on our way to the kitchens.”

Kakashi nodded. The Slytherin tapped on the wall with his wand twice and it shifted, a soft grinding noise rumbling around them. He poked his head out, scanning the corridor before nodding to Kakashi. The pair of them made their way down to the kitchens.

“Why did Anko bring you there?” Kakashi asked, in a voice he hoped was casual enough.

Obito cleared his throat. “She confessed to me, saying she liked me,” he said a bit reluctantly.

“Oh,” Kakashi said, the uncomfortable feeling in his chest upgrading to a tight fist clenching around his heart. His stomach bubbled wildly and he suddenly felt like shooting the nastiest spell he knew at the witch the next time he saw her. “I guess the rumour about her liking you is true then.” He gave a laugh, which sounded extremely fake even to himself.

Obito did not reply.

“What did you say to her?” he asked after a while.

Obito turned to him, a wary look on his face, as though he was being very careful with his next words. “I turned her down, of course,” he said straightforwardly. “You know I don’t like her. It’s you I like.”

Despite himself, Kakashi felt a small smile tug at the corners of his lips. The mental image of Obito and Anko being alone in that dark corridor brought his mood back down, however. “She’s pretty,” he said.

Obito gave a sudden laugh. “Kakashi, are you jealous?”

He shot the Ravenclaw an amused smile, his eyes twinkling, and gave another laugh. Kakashi stopped and the Slytherin realised only seconds later that he wasn’t walking alongside him. He turned back, surprised.

“You can go to the kitchens yourself,” Kakashi said coldly.

“What?” Obito looked panicked. “I don’t know the way to the kitchens.”

“Find it then.” Kakashi had turned around and was already walking back the way they had come.

“But I’m hungry,” he heard Obito whine. “Kakashi!”

Kakashi ignored the Slytherin and promptly made his way back to the Ravenclaw common room, his every step fuelled with anger as he stomped loudly through the corridors, not caring whether he got caught or not. It was all very well for Obito to be laughing, for he didn’t seem to be bothered by the fact that Anko had brought the two of them down to that dark corridor alone. Kakashi didn’t want to think about what the two could’ve done, or did down there.

“A bezoar,” he said angrily in response to the bronze eagle knocker’s question on what the cure to all poisons would be.

“That is incorrect,” the wispy, low voice spoke.

“Incorrect?” Kakashi frowned. “Why is it incorrect?”

He tried to recall the Potions lesson on poison antidotes. Professor Namikaze had mentioned about bezoars and their unique abilities to cure one from poisons. Kakashi couldn’t remember, however, if a bezoar had the ability to cure all poisons.

“Just let me in,” Kakashi said to the bronze knocker impatiently. But of course, the door did not budge.

The doe patronus, which had been sitting down and lazily watching him, got up and trotted around the helpless-looking student, gazing up at him in a slightly mocking way. Angered, he took out his wand and was about to blast the door apart – even though he knew it wouldn’t work – when he heard footsteps climbing up the spiral stairs. He panicked and quickly knocked on the door with the knocker, begging the eagle to let him in. It remained mum.

“Ahem.”

Kakashi turned around, guilt overflowing in his expression.

“Mr. Hatake,” Professor Namikaze said in a stern voice. “I have been informed by our caretaker that you and Mr. Uchiha have been found outside your common rooms after curfew.”

Kakashi gulped.

The professor stared stonily at him for a while, before turning on his heels and saying, “Please follow me.”

Kakashi trailed after his Head of House, shoulders slumped and miserable. He knew they were in big trouble. He would just have to hope for a light punishment. He followed Professor Namikaze all the way to the staffroom, where he saw Obito standing in front of the teacher's table, guiltily looking down at his feet, his hands behind his back. The two students exchanged a look, before Kakashi turned his gaze towards Professor Namikaze.

“What were the two of you thinking?” he lectured. “Prowling around the castle after Professor Tsunade clearly said that everyone should be back in their house’s common room by seven. Don’t you understand the severity of the situation? We are trying our best to minimise danger by setting up all these rules and you’re jeopardising your own safety by breaking them. This is a very foolish act. The caretaker has told me that she overheard your plans of sneaking down to the kitchens. Might I remind you once again that the kitchens are strictly off-limits to any student. You’re lucky she didn’t catch you there – it would have been two rules broken and a month of detentions for the both of you.”

Obito and Kakashi kept silent.

“As such, I understand that this is your first offence – sneaking out after curfew. I will be lenient with you and hence, will not be giving you any detention. I will, however, be writing to your parents.”

“You wouldn’t!” Obito looked up, flabbergasted.

“Yes, Mr. Uchiha, I will.” Professor Namikaze gave him a hard look. “Twenty points will be taken from both Slytherin and Ravenclaw house. I must say, Mr. Hatake, I am sorely disappointed in you. I expected a Ravenclaw to have a little more wit.”

Kakashi flushed with embarrassment and looked down.

“Now I will escort Mr. Hatake back to the Ravenclaw tower. As for Mr. Uchiha–”

There was a knock on the door and Professor Uchiha’s face emerged.

“Fugaku, excellent. You’re right on time. Might I request you escort Mr. Uchiha right here back to the Slytherin common room?” Professor Namikaze asked him.

“What mischief has he gotten up to?” he eyed Obito, who was doing his best to avoid eye contact with the menacing Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

“These two students have been found frolicking around the castle by Chiyo,” Professor Namikaze said.

“We weren’t frolic–” Obito began, but stopped when he caught the look of warning on Kakashi’s face.

Professor Namikaze continued, as if there had been no interruptions, “I have handed out the appropriate punishment. I have deducted twenty points from both houses and will write to their parents about their misbehaviour.”

“Ah yes, I was wondering why the Slytherin gems were falling back up when I walked past the hourglasses,” Professor Uchiha said. “And might I suggest, Minato, that you increase the severity of their punishment. I don’t think deducting points and writing to their parents will suffice.”

Kakashi felt dread fall upon him. Just what exactly did Professor Uchiha have in mind?

“What else do you have in mind, Fugaku?”

“Well perhaps, a week of detentions? Or taking them off their Quidditch teams?” he suggested.

“No!”

“What the fuck?”

“Language, Obito,” Professor Uchiha sneered. “Yes, I believe taking them off their teams should do the trick, seeing as the both of them missed curfew because they were foolishly playing around in the air on a broomstick.”

There was a stunned silence.

“Is that true, boys?” Professor Namikaze asked in a stern voice.

Obito didn’t answer him. Instead, he stared at his own Head of House, looking as though he was quite unable to believe the situation. “You saw us?”

“As a matter of fact, I did,” Professor Uchiha said. “I happened to be on the grounds when I caught the two of you playing the fool after Quidditch practice.”

“What were you doing out on the grounds?” Obito demanded.

Professor Uchiha’s gaze hardened considerably. “Careful, Obito. Just because you’re an Uchiha, it doesn’t give you the right to be rude towards me.” His voice was venomous, almost acidic.

“Fugaku, I understand your concern,” Professor Namikaze pitched in nervously. Perhaps he’d seen the terrorising look in Professor Uchiha’s eyes as he stared down at his own student. “But I do believe taking the boys off their respective teams is a tad too severe for a small matter such as this. However, I do agree that their punishment needs to be relooked into now that I know the motivation behind their lateness.” He turned to the two boys, who were looking completely helpless. “The two of you will be doing lines for me this Sunday. You will be in my office at three o’ clock. That is all.”

Promptly after, Obito left the staffroom with Professor Uchiha, who chaperoned him down to the Slytherin common room. He thrust his hands into his pockets, fuming as he followed his Head of House.

Professor Namikaze and Kakashi made their way towards the Ravenclaw tower. The walk was quiet and immensely awkward. Kakashi had never been close to his Head of House, even though he did consistently above average for Potions, for the blond-haired professor had always been a no-nonsense person and was never one to talk about things outside schoolwork with his students. Kakashi observed his Potions teacher quietly from the side, taking in his tensed posture, the way his eyes darted around whenever they rounded a corner or entered a new corridor, and how he held out a ball of light in front of him even though there was no need for it since the torches were still lit. He wondered why his professor was being so rigid. His curiosity finally getting the better of him, he asked, “Professor, why is everyone so uptight about security at Hogwarts?”

Professor Namikaze whipped his eyes down to Kakashi, giving him a look that clearly said, ‘Are you dumb?’

“I thought we’ve clearly emphasised on the Lethifold situation, Mr. Hatake,” he said.

“Yes, but,” pressed Kakashi. “The school already has an extensive amount of security. Surely the Lethifolds can’t get inside? I mean, even if there was a Dark wizard, they wouldn’t be able to penetrate the school’s defences, would they?”

He eyed his teacher, watching his reaction. Professor Namikaze remained silent for a long time and he was about to give up anticipating a response from him, when his Potions master finally said, “I am only telling you this because I believe you have already figured it out, Kakashi, or else you wouldn’t be asking me this specific question. The staff believes the Lethifold attacks are initiated by someone from within Hogwarts.”

Kakashi had suspected this, but it still shocked and frightened him just the same. “Someone within Hogwarts,” he pondered. “Do you have any idea who that might be?”

“We have a list of people we suspect,” Professor Namikaze said simply.

After a minute, Kakashi asked hesitantly, “Do you suspect any students?”

They had reached the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room. Professor Namikaze ignored Kakashi’s question completely. Instead, he turned to him and said, “Well here we are. You may head in.”

“I can’t, sir.” Kakashi flushed. “I got the riddle wrong.”

“Goodness,” Professor Namikaze said, clearly vexed. He sighed. “Alright then.”

He walked over to the wooden doors, his long legs reducing his strides to two. Gripping the knocker, he gave two smart raps on the door.

“What is the antidote to every poison?”

“You got this wrong?” Professor Namikaze turned to Kakashi in disbelief.

“I thought it was a bezoar,” Kakashi mumbled.

“A bezoar cures you of most poisons, not all of them,” said Professor Namikaze, clearly frustrated. “Haven’t you been listening in Potions class?”

Kakashi had, as a matter of fact. It just slipped his mind during that very crucial moment.

“I wasn’t thinking straight,” he muttured, remembering his anger and his inability to process his thoughts logically whenever he lost his temper.

Professor Namikaze gave him one last disapproving look, before turning back to the knocker and answering in a clear voice, “There is no one antidote for every poison.”

“That is correct.”

The door opened with a loud creak and Kakashi entered the common room gloomily. He turned back to witness Professor Namikaze whispering something, holding his wand out. He cast an additional patronus right outside the Ravenclaw common room and the door closed, obscuring Kakashi’s vision of the bright silver falcon swooping about.

***

The thought that someone in school could be behind all this mess occupied the back of Kakashi’s mind for the following weeks, despite being completely busy with his schoolwork and Quidditch commitments. In addition to their weekly practice, Konan had ordered for the Ravenclaw team to gather every night in the common room to discuss tactics.

He did his detention with Obito on Sunday and they came out of the room with cramped hands, but with subtle smiles on their faces, for Professor Namikaze had been kind enough to allow them to cast the Muffliato charm on him, so that he could pretend to be oblivious to their chatter while they worked on their lines. Kakashi’s mother had expressed her disappointment in her son through an angry letter, but he thought he had it much better than Obito, whose mother had found it more appropriate to send him a Howler. He couldn’t help but watch miserably as a scarlet envelope fell into Obito’s lap during breakfast and exploded into screams of his mother’s expressed disappointment and shame in her son for breaking the school rules. She threatened to confiscate his Firebolt II if she ever received another letter informing her of his misbehaviour. The Slytherin ducked his head, evidently discomfitured, and finished eating his pancakes rather angrily. Despite the angry tone Obito’s mother had used in the Howler, Kakashi could tell that the two were rather close. She reminded him a lot of his own mother.

For some reason, being mutually punished seemed to have made the two put their small recent rift behind them. Neither of them mentioned the instance of Kakashi abandoning Obito to head back to the Ravenclaw common room and Kakashi was thankful for that, for he felt extremely stupid and embarrassed thinking back on his actions.

Kakashi wasn’t very happy with the fact that he wasn’t seeing much of Obito, since they were being dictatorially confined within the new added rules. The only times he ever saw the Slytherin were during school hours, whether it be during lessons or during breaks.

With all these added distractions, Kakashi was finding it extremely hard to think about anything else, but he still managed to find time to dwell on his recent discovery that the perpetrator was suspected to be from within Hogwarts. He spent many nights conjuring his own list of suspects and Professor Uchiha was at the top of it. Kakashi had been feeling a little suspicious of the man ever since he let slip that he’d been loitering around on the grounds that evening after Quidditch practice. He was sure the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher had no business to be outside at that time of the day. Kakashi found himself observing keenly not only the professor, but the students as well. He couldn’t help but be suspicious of everyone.

He hadn’t told anyone about the new bit of information he received from Professor Namikaze, but since Obito was also wary of the fact that Professor Uchiha had been on the grounds that night, he decided he could have some contemplative discussion with the Slytherin about it. They mostly talked during Charms practical, which was the only lesson they could talk freely in without getting caught by the teacher. Obito agreed that Professor Uchiha seemed the most suspicious and they spent a good lesson thinking up reasons on why the professor could be unleashing Lethifolds onto people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG 100+ kudos *heart eyes* Thank you for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I've written quite a lot for the next chapter too (yes I have no life) I'll post it as soon as possible!


	7. Chapter 7

It was a Saturday and as Kakashi got ready for his Quidditch practice, a small owl fluttered to the window. Kakashi opened it, letting it fly in. It landed on his bed, hopping on one foot and holding out its other leg, which was clutching a small piece of parchment. Kakashi took it and quickly unfolded it to read the small scrawl.

‘Meet me at the pitch thirty minutes before your practice.’

Kakashi folded the note and put it inside his robes, a huge smile crawling onto his face. He wondered why Obito wanted to meet him. With a new spring in his steps, Kakashi quickly threw on his Quidditch robes and went down to the Great Hall for breakfast. His cheeriness did not go unnoticed by Rin and Tenzo, who eyed him curiously as he occasionally broke into happy smiles while he ate. He wolfed down his breakfast, his eagerness to meet Obito raising his friends’ eyebrows.

“I’ll be down at the pitch,” Kakashi told his friends as he gave them a cheery wave.

“So soon?” Rin asked in surprise. “Quidditch practice isn’t for another half hour.”

Kakashi merely smiled and left the Great Hall, leaving behind a dumbfounded Rin and Tenzo. He saw Obito waiting for him at the front row of one of the stands. He waved the Ravenclaw over and once Kakashi had seated himself beside him, handed him a long package.

“What’s this?” Kakashi asked in puzzlement.

“Your present.” Obito was smiling widely, his eyes crinkling into two crescents. “Happy belated birthday.”

Kakashi blinked, taking in the odd shape of the gift. “Obito, you didn’t have to. My birthday was four months ago.”

Obito shrugged. “Yeah, but I didn’t get you anything.”

“We weren’t dating then.” Kakashi bit his lip, his face heating up. “You really didn’t have to, Obito.”

“But I wanted to,” Obito said with a smile. “Go ahead and open it,” he urged.

Eagerly, Kakashi ripped the wrappings away, his movements immediately freezing when he caught a glimpse of a familiar gold handle. His breaths heavy and his heart pounding excitedly, Kakashi tore the remaining wrappings away and stared, open-mouthed, at his new Firebolt II. “No way,” he said, gaping up at Obito in disbelief.

The Slytherin was beaming as brightly as a patronus as he gazed fondly at Kakashi.

Kakashi wondered how Obito could afford this so easily. “Are you serious?” he continued in that same shocked tone.

“I know how much you’ve been wanting it,” Obito said, still beaming widely at Kakashi.

The Ravenclaw looked down at the broom, his fingers delicately trailing along its smooth, shiny handle and the sleek tail. He blinked, gazing at his reflection in the polished handle. After a long minute of silence, Kakashi finally looked up, his expression unreadable.

“Do you like it?” Obito asked tentatively.

“Of course,” replied Kakashi. “But…”

“But?” He could see the smile slowly slipping from Obito’s face. He looked anxious.

“It’s a really expensive gift, Obito.” Kakashi bit his bottom lip.

“It isn’t that much for me,” Obito assured him. “Don’t worry about the price.”

“It’s not only that,” continued Kakashi. “It’s just a very… extravagant gift. I don’t know how to repay you.”

“You don’t need to repay me, Kakashi.” Obito’s eyes softened considerably. “It’s a gift. I gave it to you because I wanted to.”

Kakashi hesitated, torn because he really, really liked the gift, but he felt bad for accepting such an expensive gift, no matter how rich the other was. Still, when Kakashi looked up at Obito and saw the genuine happiness and sincerity in his eyes, he couldn’t do anything but accept it. So he leant forward, wrapped his arms around the Slytherin and whispered a quiet, “Thank you,” into Obito’s ear.

The Slytherin jumped a little in surprise, before he relaxed and wrapped strong, steady arms around Kakashi’s frame, the smile apparent in his voice as he returned an equally quiet, “You’re welcome.”

They stayed like that for a few seconds longer than necessary, before Kakashi pulled away and the pair of them smiled at each other shyly, pink tinting their cheeks.

“Wanna take it out for a ride?” Obito asked, suddenly excited.

“Okay,” replied Kakashi, who felt nervous all of a sudden.

He’d heard all about the cool features of the Firebolt II and the extremely high speeds it could travel, having read up extensively on the broom model, and he was feeling rather apprehensive about riding such a powerful thing. What if he couldn’t control it? Kakashi was too used to the Nimbus series, which operated a completely different way from the Firebolts.

Still, once Kakashi mounted the broom, he felt a trickle of excitement shoot through his veins and he kicked off lightly, only to be pleasantly surprised when he found himself suddenly weightless and completely in control of all his movements. The latest Firebolt model was fantastic – it was the best broom Kakashi had ever ridden on and it was worth all the hype and the many Galleons it sold for. Kakashi quickly broke into his new broomstick, falling more and more in love with it whenever he made a sharp turn and it obeyed him with pinpoint precision, accelerated until the wind slapping his cheeks felt painful and rough, and soared around the skies with such ease and comfort, Kakashi felt like he was flying without a broom. The Firebolt II was everything he’d ever dreamt of and Kakashi stopped mid-air after a few thrilling rounds around the pitch, panting from the excitement and exhilaration he felt. He turned to Obito, who was right beside him on his own Firebolt II, grinning as though it was his birthday.

“It’s amazing.” Kakashi flew over to him, their brooms side by side and their thighs touching as they looked at each other fondly. “Thank you. I love it so much.” Being overwhelmed with happiness, Kakashi leant in and gave Obito a light kiss on his cheek, before retreating with a smile on his face.

Obito blinked, his hand going up to touch the area Kakashi had kissed and responded shakily, “N-No problem.”

The pair continued to soar the skies, conversing lightly as they did so, as though they were leisurely flying about on a bright Saturday morning. They left the pitch, though Kakashi didn’t realise it until much later, when he saw a turret disappear past him and looked around in confusion. They were now flying over the grounds, just a little while off the Forbidden forest. He wasn’t sure if they were allowed to fly out of the pitch, especially at this period of time, when all the rules have been made stricter and the security heightened. He raised this question to Obito, who stared back at him doubtfully.

“I don’t know. They didn’t say we weren’t allowed to,” he responded, voice barely heard over the wind.

They were over the greenhouses now and they circled the area in a slow pace, idly watching the nearby forest and the dark canopy stretching for miles. They remained silent for a while, just observing their surroundings. From the corner of his eye, Kakashi glimpsed two dark heads and looked down, immediately spotting two students hand in hand, their robes spraying out behind them as they hurried to a nearby tree. One of them, which seemed to be a girl, leant against the trunk, obscured from the view of the castle. The other faced her, his arms brought to either side of the girl’s waist and they locked lips. Kakashi frowned, recognising the couple and suddenly remembered that Rin had told him not to let anyone know of her relationship with Genma. Cursing under his breath at his friend, Kakashi whipped his broom over to Obito’s side, blocking his view of the surreptitious couple.

“I think we should head back,” he said hastily.

Obito raised an eyebrow. “Already?” He squinted in the direction of the Quidditch pitch. “Is it time for practice?”

“No, but,” Kakashi bit his lip, trying to think of what to say. “I don’t like this area much. It’s giving me the creeps.”

“Why? What’s wrong?” Obito craned his neck, trying to see past Kakashi. “Did you see a Lethifold or something?” he asked, alarmed.

Kakashi shifted about, trying to subtly cover Obito’s view with his body. “No, it’s not that. I just have a strange ominous feeling about this place.”

Obito stopped trying to look past Kakashi. He gave him a weird look. “Strange ominous feeling?” he repeated.

“Yeah, like something bad’s gonna happen.” Kakashi prayed that Obito would accept his lame excuses, for he really didn’t know how else to bring the Slytherin’s attention away.

Obito just stared at Kakashi for a while, before giving a sudden laugh. “You should have taken Divination. I didn’t know you were prophetic.”

 _I'm so glad he's dumb sometimes_ , thought Kakashi.

“Okay, let’s head back.” Obito turned around and Kakashi felt his entire body relax. He shifted over to Obito’s side and the pair of them made their way back.

Just as they were flying over the gamekeeper’s hut, Obito suddenly stopped Kakashi, placing a hand on his arm as he stared down at the Forbidden forest.

“What?” Kakashi asked.

“I think I saw someone.” Obito squinted at the Forbidden forest. “No, wait, there are two people.”

Kakashi turned to look and soon enough, two adults emerged from the Forbidden forest; Professor Utatane, their Herbology teacher, followed by Orochimaru. They seemed to be arguing and the gamekeeper appeared to be mad at the Hufflepuff Head, pointing an accusing finger at her and shouting at the top of his voice. He was clutching what looked like a spear, though it really was just a badly cut blade tied to the end of a long stick.

“No one’s entering the Dark forest without my permission!” he yelled.

“Your permission?” Professor Utatane whirled around, fists resting on her hips. She was clutching a full sack that wriggled slightly. “I suppose you own the whole Forbidden forest now?”

“What are you doing in there for? What business have you got?” demanded Orochimaru.

“I was gathering a few small animals to feed my Snargaluff.” Professor Utatane shook the bag she was holding. “And I actually found a few leaping toadstools by coincidence at the base of an old, dead tree and was about to gather the lot when you appeared out of nowhere, threatening to report me to the Headmistress saying I was loitering about and scaring the toadstools away with your stick.”

Kakashi had never seen Professor Utatane so angry, for she was usually extremely gentle. She must have been ticked off really badly and Kakashi couldn’t blame her for her outburst, for Orochimaru was glaring at her accusingly, as though she’d burnt his whole hut down and stolen all his possessions.

“You could’ve knocked on my door!”

“To get your permission? I may be new here, but I do know that it’s not customary for teachers to seek the gamekeeper’s permission to enter the Forbidden forest,” said Professor Utatane crossly.

Orochimaru gripped his long spear, walking towards Professor Utatane and towering over her small frame. He pointed a finger at her face and even though he was watching from a great height, Kakashi could see the gamekeeper’s eyes bulging from their sockets.

“You listen up, lady. Just because you have a high qualification in Herbology, you think you can boss me around.” Orochimaru took a step forward, but Professor Utatane didn’t budge. She remained still, staring coldly back at the gamekeeper. “I know more than you. Much more. I was a gifted wizard too, oh yes I was, before I lost everything – every fucking thing – and now, my wand is gone and I’m left to suck up to all your fully-qualified asses.” He held his hands out. “But guess what? I know more than you. I can prove that I’m more powerful than you even without a wand. I’ve been trained in the best school offering the best courses in Herbology and Magizoology and your knowledge will never come close to mine.”

Orochimaru gave a maniacal laugh. “You wanna know what I know? Can you guess what I’ve found? What creatures I’ve trained? And what plants I’ve discovered? I’ve seen beasts you’ve never seen before. I’ve touched the most poisonous flowers you could imagine.” He leant forward and shouted in her face, “I’m better than you! I’m better than all of you!”

The Herbology teacher finally stepped back, slinging her sack over her shoulder. “Thank you for that generous monologue, but I have to prepare for next week’s classes. Perhaps another time, Orochimaru.”

She turned, shaking her head, and strode off into the castle without another glance back. Orochimaru watched her go off, his eyes fixed intently on her retreating back. He was about to head back into his own hut, when he spotted Obito and Kakashi hovering in the air, their eyes wide as they processed the conversation they’d eavesdropped on. Orochimaru raised his spear, as though he was about to throw it at them, but he merely shook it in the air, shouting at the boys and telling them to mind their own business.

“Why do all stinking wizards think they’re entitled to everything?” he shouted, shooting a look of pure hatred towards the duo in the air.

The two boys immediately raced off, not wanting to remain within sight of the gamekeeper, who was shooting a long string of profanities at them and looked like he was completely out of his mind. They returned to the pitch. Kakashi’s mind was buzzing furiously with questions.

“I don’t get him,” said Obito after a while. “I don’t get him at all.”

“Neither do I,” frowned Kakashi. “He seems to have a deep-rooted enmity against all wizards.”

“Must be because he’s not a fully qualified one himself,” snorted Obito. “Idiotic prick, screaming at Professor Utatane like that when all she did was to collect food for her man-eating plant.”

“But what was he doing in the Forbidden forest?” Kakashi asked. "I don't reckon it's a nice place to have a stroll around."

“I don’t know.” Obito shrugged. “But I suppose as gamekeeper, you do have to tend to matters in the forest if they do arise.”

“What kind of problems would the forest have?” Kakashi wondered out loud. He thought for a while, before saying, “You don’t suppose he’s trying to look for those Lethifolds, do you?”

Obito turned to him in surprise. “Why do you think that?”

“He seems rather obsessed with them, doesn’t he? I mean, he’s practically wrapped his hut in strings and he kept telling me there were Lethifolds in the forest that day when you came down to confront him. He was warning me to stay away from the forest.”

“Oh, so that’s what he was saying?” scoffed Obito.

“Yeah, what did you think it was?” Kakashi questioned.

“I thought he was coming on to you or something,” the Slytherin muttered darkly.

There was silence as the pair of them watched the Ravenclaw team enter the pitch. They were back to sitting down in the stands. The team approached them and one by one, their jaws dropped when they caught sight of the Firebolt II in Kakashi’s hands.

“No way,” Yahiko muttered.

“Is that a Firebolt II?” Rin said incredulously.

“No, dummy, it’s a Cleansweep Five,” Kakashi said sarcastically.

“How did you get it?” Tenzo asked in awe.

“It’s my birthday gift to him,” Obito said before Kakashi could say anything. The Ravenclaw flushed in embarrassment as everyone stared at Obito, as though only realising his presence just then.

“Isn’t your birthday in September?” Rin eyed Kakashi.

“Belated birthday gift.” Obito corrected himself, answering Rin’s question.

“I didn’t know you two were a couple,” Yahiko stated bluntly.

“We–”

“So that’s why you disappeared so quickly after breakfast,” Rin said suddenly. She wriggled her eyebrows at her friend. “Bet that wasn’t the only gift he gave you.”

Kakashi opened his mouth to bring up Rin’s private little session with Genma behind the greenhouses, before closing it, remembering that he wasn’t supposed to say anything about that. He bit on his tongue harshly, angrily glaring at his smirking friend and wishing he could throw a curse at her face.

“Alright, let’s not get distracted here,” Konan said in her crisp Captain voice. “Nice birthday gift you’ve got there, Kakashi. I suppose, now that you’re a year older and you’ve gotten yourself a Firebolt II, I’ll be seeing a much better performance from you?” She gave him an expectant look and he averted his eyes, not wanting to give her any promises.

“Let’s get down to practice,” she said. “And guys, let’s not make any of our secret moves today, since we have a Slytherin joining us.”

She eyed Obito from the corner of her eye, to which he replied in a casual voice, “Don’t worry, I’ll only have my eye on one person today.” He winked at Kakashi and the team erupted into a loud chorus of “Oooh”s.

Kakashi felt himself starting to blush and he tried to hide it with an unconcerned roll of his eyes.

Practice commenced; the Ravenclaws quickly grew to admire Kakashi’s speed and agility on the Firebolt II and many of his teammates often paused to watch it glide in the air like a swift arrow. Konan often had to fly over and snap her fingers in front of a dazed team member, telling them to get a grip and worry about their own broom and their own skills. The Firebolt II was a good addition to the team and since Kakashi was primarily an attacker, he found it very convenient to race through the pitch in breakneck speed to shoot a goal. The whole thing ended with the Ravenclaws being in high spirits, for practice had gone exceptionally well, and many of them clapped a hand on Kakashi’s shoulder, congratulating him on bringing such enthusiastic spirit to the team with his skilled play.

Kakashi smiled at them. He quickly packed the equipment and balls; and instantly went over to the stands, ignoring the snickers and chuckles behind him as he approached a beaming Obito.

“You played excellently out there,” he complimented, once Kakashi was within earshot.

“Thanks,” Kakashi said. He slipped his hand into Obito’s, intertwining their fingers. “Want to head for lunch together?”

“Sure,” Obito grinned. “Why don’t you come over to the Slytherin table? I can make space for you.”

Kakashi laughed, nudging the Slytherin. “You know that’s not allowed. And I’m not sure I’d be welcome, your friends don’t like me very much.”

“Who cares about them,” Obito said. “It’s not like they can do anything about it, anyways.”

Kakashi snorted, though still with a smile on his face. “What about the professors?”

“I’m sure no one will notice,” The Slytherin insisted.

“Professor Uchiha will.”

Obito sighed. “Alright, alright. I suppose I can still see you from across the hall.”

Kakashi chuckled. They walked back to the castle together, Kakashi feeling as though his day couldn’t get any more perfect, minus that weird little scene he’d witnessed on the grounds before practice. He thought back on it, frowning when he found a lot of things didn’t make sense. Deciding he could ponder on it when he had the time, he mentally added Orochimaru’s name to his list of suspects.

***

Quidditch had always been a game well-anticipated in the wizarding world and it was with no doubt, the most popular sport at Hogwarts, drawing more than two-thirds of the school down to the Quidditch pitch to watch the often nail-biting match during game season. However, nothing drew a bigger crowd than the most anticipated match in the wizarding school: Gryffindor versus Slytherin.

Students, teachers and even ghosts, partook in an increasing level of competition and the tension in the school escalated as the match arrived. It was not uncommon to see a Slytherin surreptitiously shooting a hex at an unsuspecting Gryffindor Quidditch player, nor was it unheard of for Gryffindors to shout witty and often vituperative comebacks at the insults shot at them.

By the end of the week preceding the Quidditch match, Shisui and Yuugao, two Gryffindor players, had been admitted to the hospital wing for being on the receiving end of the Slytherins’ spite. They had been discharged subsequently after, but not before suffering a whole two hours of Madam Mei clucking her tongue and complaining about the students' immaturity. None of their injuries was serious, but it struck a bitter wound in the Gryffindor team, who took the personal inflicts to their teammates as an insult to the whole team and Genma reacted to this by training them harder than ever.

Uchiha Inabi, the Slytherin Captain, wasn’t backing down either. After painstakingly seeking Konan out, he struck a deal with the Ravenclaw Captain to swap Quidditch practice sessions with the Ravenclaw team, so that the Slytherins could have an extra two hours of last-minute practice the day before the match. A few of the Ravenclaw team members raised objections and complaints when they realised they wouldn't be training at all that week, but Konan stood firm with her decision and reasoned with them that it would be better for the Ravenclaws if Slytherin won the match.

Sunday eventually arrived, and the excitement and tension within the castle couldn’t get thicker. Kakashi woke up feeling exceptionally excited. He liked watching matches better than playing them. For one thing, he could get all the thrill and excitement without feeling exceedingly worried about the outcome.

As Kakashi entered the Great Hall, he saw a lively flurry of red and gold, and green and silver at opposite ends of the hall, where the tables of Gryffindor and Slytherin were. The students of both houses were adamant not to lose to each other in terms of flamboyantly displaying their house spirit. Lion hats, snake scarves, banners and flags – the atmosphere was indeed thrilling. A few Ravenclaws could be seen holding green and silver flags embellished with a single serpent and Kakashi knew they were merely siding with the Slytherins only because Gryffindor's defeat would be advantageous to Ravenclaw. Majority of the house however, did not adorn any supportive accessories. The Hufflepuffs were more united – most of them were wearing what looked like small badges on the front of their clothes, which, upon closer inspection, read, "Puffs For The Gryffs!". Hufflepuff and Gryffindor had always maintained a somewhat friendly camaraderie and as the pale-faced Gryffindor players walked past them, they gave warm, encouraging smiles. After a very noisy breakfast, most of the school left for the pitch together, chants erupting from the massive crowd and cheers sending their players to the locker rooms.

Rin managed to find good seats, and she, Kakashi and Tenzo, situated themselves at one of the top rows of the stands, overlooking the entire pitch. Their surroundings looked fresh; three golden hoops gleamed at each end under the subtle glow of the morning sun. Anticipation brewed in the air and as soon as Gai announced the names of the Gryffindor team, the sea of red and gold erupted into deafening cheers as one by one, the players filed onto the pitch. Rin quickly brought her binoculars up to her face when Genma's name was mentioned.

The Slytherin players were called out and Kakashi found his eyes automatically drawn to Obito’s tall, confident posture. His face was hardened with concrete determination, though Kakashi thought he could detect a hint of apprehension in his features. He clapped along with the rest of the Slytherins when Obito's name was announced. After the usual pre-match formalities, the players mounted their brooms; Obito gripped his Firebolt II in anticipation, his face contorted with nervousness. Miss Kushina blew the whistle and they kicked off, Gai’s commentary following them into the skies.

“And the Quaffle is with Slytherin’s Sasori, who passes it to Izumo. Gryffindor chaser Shizune tries to intercept – she fails,” Gai commentated into a magically enhanced microphone, his booming voice overpowering the cheers from the stands. “Izumo races past all the players and approaches the goalposts. Genma tries to block him- ooh… close one there! Izumo swerves past him and shoots. Ten points to Slytherin!”

The Slytherin end rose into screams and shouts as Izumo pumped a fist in the air. The scoreboard showed: GRYFFINDOR – 0, SLYTHERIN – 10.

Kakashi saw Obito racing enthusiastically towards his teammate to high-five him and smiled. Things were starting well for the Slytherins.

The luck continued, with the Slytherins scoring three more goals and the Gryffindors two. It was a tight match, but the green-clad Quidditch players were strong in their defence, making it difficult for the Gryffindors to penetrate through to get to the goalposts. Kakashi felt himself swell with pride whenever Obito intercepted a pass or snatched the Quaffle away from one of the Gryffindor Chasers' hands. Gryffindor's offence was strong, but Slytherin's defence was just as strong and after the first few minutes, both teams resorted to passing the Quaffle between them endlessly, with a good deal of interceptions and blocks, resulting in twenty minutes of scoreless play. Genma called for a timeout and the two Captains gathered their own teams.

“It’s a very close match,” Rin commented, putting her binoculars down.

“It’s always a close match when it’s Gryffindor versus Slytherin,” stated Kakashi.

“I wonder who will win.” Tenzo frowned.

“Konan’s hoping for a Gryffindor defeat, isn’t she?” Rin remarked.

Kakashi didn’t reply. Obito had looked up at the Ravenclaw crowd, his eyes scanning for someone. Kakashi raised a hand but Obito had already dropped his gaze, turning back to his Captain and nodding at his instructions. The game resumed.

“The match starts with Shisui getting the Quaffle. He passes it to Shizune, who speeds along the pitch. And- holy smokes, Slytherin’s Obito whisks past her and grabs the Quaffle from her arms. Obito to Izumo, and back to Obito…”

The Slytherins seemed to be changing tactics. It appeared Inabi had instructed Obito to be on offence as well and it seemed to be working. With Obito's skill and the Firebolt II he was riding, Slytherin had managed two more scores in the next fifteen minutes.

“Another ten points for Slytherin!” announced Gai as the scoreboard switched to show: GRYFFINDOR – 20, SLYTHERIN – 60. “Looks like Genma is shouting something at his Chasers. Wonder what he’s saying.”

After a short flurry of instructions from their Captain, the three Gryffindor Chasers spread out, waiting for the Quaffle to be thrown up again. Aoba grabbed the Quaffle and steered around the waiting Slytherin Chasers. Obito sped after him, hot on his tail and a moment later, snatched the Quaffle away from him. The Gryffindors groaned collectively.

“Slytherin Chaser Obito has taken the Quaffle and is speeding back to the Gryffindor goalposts. No one seems to be blocking him. Will it be another ten points for Slytherin? Hang on.” Gai squinted. “What are the Gryffindors doing?”

Shisui and Aoba, two of the Gryffindor Chasers, had flanked Obito tightly on both sides. The Slytherin looked at them confusedly. Kakashi could see him slowing down and heard a gasp beside him just as he realised what was going on.

“They’re leading him off track, the nasty little shits,” Rin hissed.

Sure enough, the two Gryffindor Chasers forced Obito towards one the tall, thick pillars mounted at intervals in between the stands. He propelled towards it, unable to swerve away for the two Chasers at his sides were sticking to him like glue. Obito’s eyes widened as he felt himself losing control and just before he hit the pillar, the Gryffindor players left his sides, swerving outwards and Obito tumbled headlong into the drapes covering the pillars, skidding to the ground. The Quaffle left his hands and was picked up by Shizune, who raced towards the goalposts and shot it in.

“Ooh… pretty nasty fall there,” Gai cringed. “Sounds like the Slytherins aren’t very happy about this.”

“Foul! Foul! Foul!” the Slytherins were shouting. Angry fists were pumped in the air and nasty looks were shot at the Gryffindors.

“Miss Kushina has gone to check on Obito. Relax, folks, I’m sure it’s nothing serious. Look, he's standing up and is getting back in the air. He didn't slip from his broom so it wasn't too bad,” Gai affirmed when he received a nod from Miss Kushina.

Gai paused and the protests from the Slytherins rose noisily. The call for a penalty was growing louder.

“It wasn’t a foul,” reported Gai. “Contact is allowed, just no grabbing. Chill, people.”

The hubbub had increased in volume exponentially, such that it was now a deafening din emanating from one side of the stadium. Gai tried to control the crowd, but failed. He turned to the professors behind him helplessly. Professor Tsunade touched her throat with her wand and muttered something. A moment later, her booming voice echoed throughout the stadium, “Silence.”

The noise subsided, though the atmosphere was still extremely hostile and bitter. Kakashi wondered if the Gryffindors didn’t feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable under the weighty glares of the Slytherins. They appeared wondrously unfazed. He shot a worried glance at Obito, wondering if he was really alright. Obito was slowly moving to his position and Inabi was flying beside him, face angry and mouth iterating rapid instructions. At the sound of the whistle, the Slytherin Captain gave a short bark of command to his Beaters and flew towards the goalposts to get into position.

“Inabi looks pissed,” commented Gai. “I wouldn't want to be a Gryffindor player right now. The dude's got a reputation for his dirty play. Obito seems to be alright, though he looks a bit unstable up there."

Kakashi observed the Slytherin Chaser anxiously, watching as he winced a little and clutched the side of his head. He swayed unsteadily in the air and Kakashi feared for his wellbeing.

“The Quaffle is back up and the game resumes. The Slytherins are fighting more viciously than ever. It looks like Inabi has ordered Obito to stay back on defence. The poor dude looks like he can barely accelerate. Let’s hope one of the Seekers finds the Snitch soon so he can rest.” Gai gave a half-hearted laugh. “Okay, back to the game. Izumo with the Quaffle. He passes it to Sasori, who passes it back to him. The two boys are shuffling the Quaffle between them. Sasori approaches the goalposts. He scores... No, he doesn’t! Gryffindor Captain Genma blocks the Quaffle at the last minute!”

A roaring cheer rose from the Gryffindors, followed by spiteful jeers and ‘boo’s from the Slytherins.

“Miss Kushina sends the Quaffle up again. It’s snatched by Gryffindor’s Shizune. She bolts towards the Slytherin goalposts. None of the Chasers are around her. She might make it! Will she score? Will she redeem Gryffindor- oh no!”

Gai’s sudden shocked exclamation was followed by an outcry from the horrified Gryffindor spectators. Shizune was hit full in the face with a Bludger, whipping her backwards towards the ground.

“Man,” exclaimed a still-flabbergasted Gai. “Slytherin’s Hana has sent a Bludger straight at Shizune from half the pitch away. This is the second time Shizune’s been hit in the face with a Bludger. I hope she doesn’t suffer from brain damage after this. I’m not exactly sure if Madam Mei is qualified to heal that. She’s knocked out cold. Gryffindor’s going to need to replace their Chaser again… Yep, there he is! Raido, Gryffindor's iconic arrogant Chaser!”

“It's a foul! I want a penalty shot!” someone from the Gryffindor crowd shouted, followed by angry hollers of agreement.

“That was not a foul,” clarified Gai. “Anyway, the game resumes. Gryffindor’s defence is weakened by the replacement of one of their Chasers. Izumo from Slytherin races past the Gryffindors and easily scores a goal. Another ten points to Slytherin.”

“They’re winning.” Rin bit her lip anxiously.

“Shouldn’t it be a good thing?” asked Tenzo.

“It is. But Konan doesn't want them to win by a big margin; it'll be harder for us to catch up. Hopefully, Gryffindor can tie with them or something before Yugito catches the Snitch. Konan's certain she will catch the Snitch before Yuugao, judging by how she’s way more experienced than her," Rin told him.

Tenzo nodded.

Kakashi wasn’t listening much. He was fixed on Obito. It looked like the Slytherin had somewhat recovered from the fall, being considerably steadier on his broom, though it didn't go unmissed by Kakashi whenever he winced slightly, presumably from the pain in his head. “I think he’s a bit concussed,” he said.

“Who?” Rin looked at him confusedly.

“Obito.” Kakashi pointed at him. “He’s not flying as well as he usually does.”

"Oh, he'll live," Rin dismissed casually.

Just then, another collective shout emerged from the crowd; Gai was talking rapidly into his microphone.

“-seems like Inabi’s ordered his Beaters to knock the Gryffindor players out one by one.” There was a touch of anger to his tone. “Gryffindor Beater Kotetsu got his bat knocked out of his hand. Things are not looking well for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.”

The whistle blew once again, amidst the adamant shouting from the Gryffindor crowd, and they resumed play. The Gryffindor players fought back hard, shoving back whenever the Slytherins heaved their bodies against them. A whistle was sounded only two minutes in and a livid-looking Miss Kushina flew up to Shisui and Obito, ordering a penalty shootout to Gryffindor.

“That’s unfair! He shoved him back!” cried Kakashi.

Obito flitted over to his Captain, sourly receiving a scolding. Shisui did the penalty and he scored. Gryffindor was closing in on a tie with Slytherin.

It was an additional grueling fifteen minutes of play, during which, Gryffindor had earned themselves twenty more points and another penalty shootout.

“You do not hit the Bludger at the Keeper if the Quaffle is not within the scoring area!” Miss Kushina shouted at Hana, who rolled her eyes indifferently.

Rin had gotten up beside Kakashi and was gripping the railing in front of her anxiously, watching as Genma got up from the ground, wincing. Fortunately, the Keeper hadn’t been that high up when he was knocked over, and hence, was not inflicted with any injuries.

“Gryffindor scores another ten points! They're finally ahead of Slytherin. Let's keep it that way fellas! Now would be the perfect time for Yuugao to capture the Snitch.” Gai wasn't trying to hide his biasedness towards his house any longer. His bitterness towards the Slytherin players was obvious from the tone of his voice.

The Gryffindors scored a couple more goals, making them lead Slytherin house by thirty points. Kakashi could see the looks of anxiety on the Slytherins’ faces. If Gryffindor won this match, all they’d have to do was beat the Hufflepuffs and they would win the Quidditch cup. Just then, a collective gasp rippled over the watching crowd when the two Seekers, who had been circling the skies throughout the entire game, suddenly pelted to the ground in high speed. Yugito was ahead of Yuugao and she raced towards one of the corners of the pitch. Kakashi couldn’t see where the Snitch was, but he watched with tensed apprehension as the Slytherin Seeker stretched out a hand and enclosed it around a small golden ball, dramatically somersaulting to a halt in mid-air. She held up her arm, pumping it in victory. Yuugao whisked past her a second later, a look of obvious disappointment on the Gryffindor’s face.

There was a moment of silence, as everyone processed what had just happened during those fast seconds, before a thunderous uproar erupted from the stands. Every single Slytherin was on their feet and they danced about jubilantly, ecstatic about their win. The Gryffindors had equal looks of shock and disbelief on their faces and the Gryffindor Quidditch team stared at each other desolately. The Slytherin team rejoiced, flying towards one another and landing in a heap on the ground.

“That’s it, everyone!” Gai shouted over the noise, his voice barely heard as celebrations ensued. “Slytherin Seeker Yugito captures the Snitch! Slytherin wins Gryffindor two-hundred and twenty to one-hundred.”

It was madness, chaos. Some of the Slytherins had jumped down from the stands and were now rushing towards their Quidditch team, who looked like they were having some kind of ritual, hopping around on the ground. Kakashi looked towards the teachers’ stand and noted that Professor Uchiha was looking extremely pleased. There was a triumphant smirk on his face that was greatly contrasted with the heavy look of disappointment on Professor Nara’s face, who was the Head of Gryffindor.

“Well, at least we got the outcome we wanted,” Rin stated. “Now all we have to do is beat Slytherin and Hufflepuff by a larger margin.”

Kakashi bit his lip. The Ravenclaws still had two more games coming up and they needed to see how Slytherin would fare against Hufflepuff before they could truly tell the number of points they needed to win each house by. It wasn’t going to be easy, for the Slytherins were known to intentionally delay the capture of the Snitch in their matches against the Hufflepuffs, so that they could gather as many points as possible. Ravenclaw's chances at winning the cup were very slim, but at least they had a shot at it.

“Hey, you’re not going over to congratulate your boyfriend?” Rin teased.

Kakashi looked at the Slytherin team, some of whom were now being hoisted up on their supporters' shoulders.

“Maybe later,” he mumbled, seeing Obito’s animated face as he talked to his friends.

“Go on,” Rin urged. “I’ll come with you. I need to get down to the pitch too, anyway.”

“Genma?” Kakashi questioned.

Rin nodded.

“I’m coming too,” Tenzo suddenly spoke. "I promised Iruka we would hang out after the match."

Kakashi rushed down the stands together with Rin and Tenzo, pushing past the many bodies on the way. A Ravenclaw sixth-year glared at him when he shoved past her and another shrieked when he stepped on her cloak, causing her to stumble on the stairs, the books in her arms tumbling out and hitting the floor in dull thuds that were barely heard over the chaos.

“Sorry,” Kakashi apologised when she glared at him, waving her wand and summoning all the books back into her arms.

He turned away and squeezed past the masses of students. The crowd was moving idly and he felt compressed. Kakashi finally reached the pitch and he immediately spotted the Slytherins, who were having a sort of mini celebration with their small crowd of friends and admirers surrounding them. The Gryffindor team loitered nearby, the two Captains shaking hands. Kakashi spotted Obito’s head amongst his group of friends and started making his way over to him. A pretty purple-haired girl approached Obito, her cloak open at the front to reveal a short skirt and a figure-hugging blouse. As Kakashi neared the boisterous Slytherin team, he saw the witch push a flask into Obito’s hand. He refused politely, but the witch was persistent and he eventually took it from her. Genma appeared right in front of Kakashi at that time.

“Kakashi,” the Gryffindor Keeper greeted, his broad grin showing his happiness.

“Oh, hi,” Kakashi returned, a little bewildered that the Gryffindor Captain had approached him.

“Have you seen Rin?” Genma asked in a voice so soft, Kakashi had to strain his ears to hear his mumble.

“She’s over there.” Kakashi threw a casual thumb over his shoulder, directing him to his friend, who was standing a few feet away.

Genma smiled. “Great. I’ll catch you later.” He clapped a hand on Kakashi’s shoulder.

The Ravenclaw nodded, already impatiently turning back to Obito. Just then, a loud cheer erupted from the mob around him and he covered his ears with his hands, wondering in astonishment what the Slytherins were shouting so loudly over. He got his answer. Everyone’s head was turned towards a pair of Slytherins, a boy and a girl, locked in a tight embrace. Kakashi’s heart turned into lead when he realised that they were Obito and Anko. The witch had pulled Obito’s head down and was pressing her lips feverishly to his.

The world seemed to crash down on Kakashi. He watched as Obito wrapped his arms around her waist and eagerly drew her closer to him. Kakashi stumbled back, his hand twitching towards his wand inside his jean pocket. The pair separated and Obito stared down at her with a look of pure infatuation in his eyes, as though he could see no one but her in this entire world. Kakashi felt sick, nauseous, and his vision had instantly turned blurry.

“Oh shit,” someone muttered behind him and he didn’t need to turn to see that it was Rin.

He didn’t want to look at her; he didn’t want to see the look of pity on his friend’s face. Kakashi turned and sped away from the pitch, away from the crowd and from Obito.

“Kakashi, wait!” he heard Rin call out behind him. He ignored her and pushed past everyone, angry tears filling up his eyes. He couldn’t even think straight; all he saw was red and all he could feel was this dull, hollow pain in his chest.

Kakashi trampled blindly across the grounds. He didn’t know where he was heading, he just needed to be away from that scene.

“Kakashi, for Merlin’s sake, slow down!”

Kakashi ignored his friend’s persistent cries and continued stomping away, his fury and anguish rendering him completely unaware of his surroundings. He didn’t even realise he was entering the Forbidden forest until he passed by the first few clusters of trees. A strange sense of foreboding took over him – it was like someone was watching him – but he quickly dismissed the feeling and continued venturing deeper into the forest, Rin’s relentless cries following him.

Rin eventually caught up with him. She grabbed Kakashi’s hand, but the Ravenclaw fourth-year shook it away, whirling around and glaring at his friend even though he knew Rin didn’t do anything wrong.

Rin was panting slightly, looking slightly furious, but mostly worried and concerned for Kakashi. “I know you're upset, but it’s not what it looks like,” she began.

“I suppose you know what that was then?” Kakashi spat.

“Listen.” Rin looked like she was trying her best to be patient. “We all know Anko has a thing for Obito. We all saw her give that flask to him. It was obviously a love potion.”

“He kissed her!" Kakashi cried.

"It's the effects of the potion," Rin explained. "I'm one-hundred percent sure he doesn't like that bitch and I'm willing to bet all my family's fortune that was a love potion she gave him – and a rather powerful one too. Look, why don't we head back? Obito should be healed by now; Professor Namikaze's seen lots of cases like this."

Kakashi heaved as he registered Rin’s words.

"Come on, Kakashi," Rin added when the fourth-year did not say anything. "You know he wouldn't do that. I’ve seen how much he’s changed since you two started the whole friendship thing, and I can tell he’s completely smitten with you."

Kakashi stared back at his friend. He knew he was being stupid, but he couldn't help but feel extremely betrayed and hurt all the same. Objectively speaking, it made more sense that Obito had been tricked into consuming some love potion, but Kakashi couldn't get the image out of his mind and it really hurt him a lot. He eventually sighed, "You're right. I'm just overreacting. It was just... unexpected. And it hurt a lot." He didn't add that he'd been extremely wary about Anko ever since Obito talked about her in that dimly-lit secret corridor. He didn't want Rin to think of him as someone who was sensitive and who was easily affected by these things, even if that might be true.

Rin nodded. "I understand."

A shuffling sound was heard to their right and Rin whipped her head towards it. After a few brief moments of silence, she turned back to Kakashi. "Let's head back," she pleaded. "This place is giving me the creeps."

Kakashi looked around him and took in their gloomy surroundings. The trees seemed so much taller now that they were in the forest's depths, and the light that filtered in was thin and weak. It was eerily quiet. His sense of foreboding grew stronger and Kakashi felt his palms starting to sweat a little.

A slight rustle came from a different direction this time and Kakashi put his hand inside his pocket, gripping his wand tightly. "Okay." He turned to Rin. "Do you know the way back?"

"No." Rin's eyes widened. "I thought you knew."

"I don't." Kakashi blinked. "I mean, it's not like I come strolling into the forest every now and then."

"Great," muttered Rin. "So we're lost. Why did you even come here in the first place? You know we aren't allowed."

Kakashi did not know. He'd been too preoccupied with his emotions and the scene that was playing in his head over and over again that he did not notice.

"I know a spell," Rin said suddenly. "It might guide us back to Hogwarts." She took out her wand and laid it on her palm. Kakashi took out his own wand as well, gripping it tightly as his eyes flitted around him nervously.

"Point me," Rin muttered and the wand spun, slowing down to point in a certain direction.

"What's that supposed to show?" Kakashi asked in confusion.

"It's supposed to make my wand point north," explained Rin.

"Okay," said Kakashi slowly. "Hogwart's south-west from the forest." He twisted his head, trying to determine his bearings. "It's that way," he pointed.

"Let's get going," urged Rin nervously. She gripped her wand tightly and like Kakashi, did not put it inside her pocket, but held it at her side.

Another sound broke the still air – this time, it was the sound of a twig breaking. They whirled around and whipped their wands out in front of them, pointing them in different directions. Kakashi glanced warily around him. His heart was pounding loudly in his chest and the hand that was holding his wand out shook slightly with fear.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Rin demanded.

There was no movement. Something shiny caught the light – a watch – and Kakashi turned towards it just as a hoarse voice called out, "Stupefy!"

He reacted quickly, pointing his wand at the man emerging from between two trees and yelled, "Expelliarmus!"

The wizard's wand left his hand and it fell beside Kakashi on the forest floor. Kakashi's eyes widened; it was Orochimaru. The deranged gamekeeper gave a sharp cackle that sliced through the air and a few birds evacuated the nearby trees as Rin toppled over onto the hard ground.

With another screech of laughter, Orochimaru spun on his heels and set off through the trees. Kakashi immediately chased after him, his wand held out in front of him and pointed at the gamekeeper’s back.

“Stop!” Kakashi cried.

Orochimaru was fast, his long legs allowing him to leap over raised roots with ease. Kakashi stumbled across the rough forest floor, his feet getting caught under the uneven bumps of roots snaking all around the forest ground. The distance between them was getting larger and soon, Kakashi could only hear the heavy, muted footsteps of the gamekeeper, his back barely visible through the foliage. Kakashi aimed his wand at Orochimaru’s back and thought fiercly, Levicorpus.

The man in front of him was suddenly jerked up into the air by his ankles, as though an invisible pair of hands had grabbed them and was dangling him in mid-air. Kakashi slowed down to a jog, doubling over to catch his breath when he reached the struggling gamekeeper, who was yelling for him to be let down.

“Why did you attack us?” he asked in between gasps of air.

Orochimaru stopped thrashing about and stared unblinkingly at Kakashi. Beads of sweat crawled from his forehead into his hairline and dripped down from the tips of his hair.

“I told you not to step into the forest,” he said in a low voice. “It’s a very dangerous place to be.”

“Why are you in the forest then?” Kakashi demanded.

“Aren’t you scared of the Lethifolds?” Orochimaru asked quietly.

“You haven’t answered my question,” Kakashi remarked.

“You did not heed my advice,” Orochimaru continued slowly. “And now you and your friend will pay.” He gave a broad grin, which, coupled with his wide, bloodshot eyes, made him look remarkably creepy.

Kakashi ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “Merlin’s pants, I’m talking to a madman. I’ll be better off bringing Professor Tsunade here,” he mumbled to himself.

Orochimaru gave a shout of laughter, which came out sounding like a short, wheezy snort. “I wouldn’t worry too much about me if I were you,” he sneered.

“What do you mean?” Kakashi frowned.

Orochimaru leered at him in a way that sent shivers down Kakashi’s spine. “You think it’s wise to leave your friend alone in the forest? Stunned and unable to defend herself from,” Orochimaru dropped his voice to a whisper. “Lethifolds?”

The blood in Kakashi’s veins chilled and he took a step back, his whole body tensing up with dread. The grin on Orochimaru’s face widened and he threw his head back, laughing loudly. His face was slowly turning red from all the blood rushing down to his head.

Kakashi wheeled round and raced back through the dark shadows of the tall, hooded trees. The forest suddenly appeared much more dangerous. He didn’t care about the fact that he’d just left Orochimaru hanging upside down in the middle of the forest; he just wanted to see that his friend was alright.

_She has to be alright. She has to be._

Kakashi kept that thought running through his mind like a mantra. But somewhere deep down, that feeling of foreboding he’d been having for a while bloomed, dipping his every thought in worry. Surely Orochimaru was just trying to scare him. He’d hadn’t left Rin for more than a couple of minutes. Kakashi pushed through two thick ferns, the crisscrossing leaves lashing against his arms. His heart was bursting out his chest and his eyes scanned the vicinity wildly for his friend. He found her frozen on the ground, a thick black cloak hovering over her body.

“No!” Kakashi yelled and swung his wand out, pointing it at the vicious creature.

It was bigger than he had imagined, resembling a small blanket, and was a few inches thick. It had no eyes, no ears and no mouth, just a thick black cloak that was slowly inching up to cover his friend’s entire body. Panicked, Kakashi shut his eyes and tried to squeeze out a happy memory. When was the last time he was happy? He couldn’t remember. All he could see under the blacks of his eyelids was Rin getting engulfed by the Dark creature.

“Expecto Patronum!” he shouted.

Nothing but a silver wisp of smoke slithered out of the end of his wand, disappearing less than a second later.

“Shit,” Kakashi cursed and he tried again, wildly choosing a random memory of him getting an Outstanding in Potions.

There was nothing produced. He couldn’t concentrate. The Lethifold had covered most of Rin’s body and Kakashi could see the third-year’s head lolling to the side as the creature climbed up her chest. It was going to suffocate her and consume her whole.

Casting a wild glance around him, Kakashi picked up the nearest thing lying at his feet – a rock – and threw it at the beast. He knew it wasn’t the wisest thing to do, but at that point in time, he was too desperate to get the creature away from his paralysed friend to think straight. The rock hit the Lethifold with a dull whack – like something heavy whipping against a strong piece of cloth. The creature stopped and slowly turned towards him.

 _Fuck, fuck, fuck,_ thought Kakashi as he stumbled back.

“E-Expecto Patronum!” he yelled, but like the first two times, nothing besides a feeble wisp of silver smoke emerged from the tip of his wand.

As though it had realised that Kakashi was unable to defend himself, the Lethifold crawled down from Rin and slowly glided over to the petrified fourth-year. Kakashi was rooted to the spot, unable to feel his legs, and he couldn’t think, all he could do was watch in horror as the beast made its way towards him.

The creature was menacing; the fluid ripples of its dark coat exhibiting a sinister appearance as it glided noiselessly across the forest floor. It was silent, and that was what made it so dangerous. The Lethifold moved with such a terrifying grace that Kakashi was transfixed with fright.

“Expecto Patronum!” he tried again to no avail.

_Why in the name of Dumbledore and his fucking beard can’t I conjure this spell?_

The Lethifold approached him with increased vigour. It had sensed that its prey was an easy one.

“Expecto Patronum!” another voice called out all of a sudden.

A majestic eagle came soaring out of a crowd of trees, swooping down towards the Lethifold. Kakashi watched with a great sense of relief and fascination as the patronus made directly for the creature, its bright silver glow dazzling in the misty forest. The Dark creature seemed to shrink under the pale light of the spell and slinked away through the shady gaps of the nearby bushes. A boy hurried towards Kakashi, heavily panting and worry tight in all his features. The eagle made a smooth U-turn, gliding back to its caster and disappeared.

“Obito,” Kakashi whispered, his eyes suddenly filling up with tears. The relief he felt was overwhelmingly aching.

“Are you okay?” Obito asked, placing his warm hands on either side of Kakashi’s face, his concerned eyes roaming over the Ravenclaw. “Are you hurt?”

Kakashi didn’t even realise he was trembling until he felt the two steady arms encircling his body and he let out a quivery breath, trying to calm himself. “I’m okay,” he breathed.

“What happened?” Obito asked, pulling Kakashi closer into his chest and rubbing his back soothingly.

“Rin…” Kakashi looked at his friend still lying unconsciously on the ground.

Obito followed his line on vision, his eyes widening when he saw the third-year. “Oh shit, what in the world happened here?” He turned back to Kakashi and loosened his hold, looking tremendously shocked.

“It was Orochimaru,” Kakashi revealed. “He stunned Rin.” Breaking eye-contact with Obito, he continued in a quiet murmur, “I ran into the forest because I got upset after seeing you kiss Anko. Rin followed me and we were about to go back to the castle when Orochimaru appeared and stunned her. It was my fault. I can't believe how stupid I am. Why did I even come here?” Kakashi gripped his hair, feeling thoroughly distraught. Obito said nothing for a while.

“Did the Lethifold come right after Orochimaru stunned her?” he finally questioned.

“No, I left her.” Saying the words out loud was making Kakashi feel even worse. Why did he have to follow Orochimaru? He knew the forest wasn’t safe. He knew better than to leave Rin alone. “I was chasing Orochimaru. I managed to dangle him in the air and was contemplating calling one of the teachers down when he told me that Rin was in danger of the Lethifolds. And when I came back, that thing was about to eat her up. I shouldn’t have left her. It's all my fault.”

Obito pulled Kakashi back into his arms as the Ravenclaw continued to chastise himself. “Hey, it’s not your fault,” Obito said in a gentle voice, pressing a kiss to Kakashi’s head. “You didn’t want Orochimaru to escape, so you chased him. That was really brave. And besides, you wouldn’t have known that that Lethifold would come for Rin.” Pausing to let the words sink in, Obito unwound an arm from Kakashi’s frame and took one of the Ravenclaw’s cold hands instead, rubbing soothing circles on it. “We should bring Rin up to the castle.”

“What about Orochimaru?” Kakashi asked, thinking of the gamekeeper he’d left twisting in the air, struggling against the spell Kakashi had cast on him.

“We can leave him there for a few more minutes. He won't die,” said Obito bitterly. “We’ll see if we can find a professor and bring him here.”

Kakashi nodded and slipped out of Obito’s grasp. He walked over to Rin’s side. “Do you think she’ll be okay?” he asked worriedly.

“I don’t know,” Obito answered truthfully. “We have to let Madam Mei take a look at her first.”

Obito went over to the Ravenclaws, heaving Rin up on his back with Kakashi’s help and they made their way back to the castle. They trekked in silence for a long time.

After a while, Obito spoke, “You said you came here because you saw me kiss Anko.”

Kakashi remained silent. He focused on the ground below him, careful not to trip over any of the rocks covered in slippery moss.

“I’m really sorry, Kakashi, I didn’t know what I was doing. She gave me a love potion and gosh, I felt like shit when Professor Namikaze healed me.” Obito looked devastated. “I’m really sorry,” he repeated, his distraught heavy in his tone.

“I overreacted,” Kakashi stated. “I wasn’t thinking straight when I stormed in here. I was upset and I let my emotions get the better of me.”

“It wasn’t your fault.” Obito shook his head, accidentally bumping against Rin’s head. “I shouldn’t have drunk that thing. I was just so happy that we won the match that I wasn't paying attention… I’m so sorry, Kakashi.”

“Don’t worry about it,” mumbled Kakashi. He wasn’t angry with the Slytherin anymore, he just didn’t want to talk about it.

They walked on in silence. By the time they reached the edge of the forest, Kakashi was completely beat. He was thankful Obito was strong enough to carry Rin back to the castle, for he wasn’t sure he’d have been able to do it on his own in his current state.

Kakashi had never been so glad to catch a glimpse of the magnificent castle standing tall against the clear blue sky. They steadily climbed up a grassy path. Kakashi glimpsed at the gamekeeper hut; the curtains were drawn and there was no smoke coming out of the chimney. There was still a ridiculous amount of rope strung all around the small hut.

They finally reached the castle. Obito was just suggesting for Kakashi to leave Rin with him while he goes and look for a teacher when a familiar, deep voice demanded, “What is going on?

“Professor Uchiha!”

The duo whirled around and faced the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. His eyes were narrowed suspiciously.

“It’s Rin, sir,” Kakashi informed him hastily. “She’s been stunned.”

“Stunned?” The professor swiftly turned his gaze to Rin’s face, observing her closely. “Who stunned her?”

“Orochimaru,” Kakashi responded.

“Orochimaru?” Professor Uchiha’s eyes narrowed into black slits. “The gamekeeper?”

“Yes, sir.” Kakashi bit his lip. “Rin and I were in the forest when-”

“The forest? The Forbidden forest?” Professor Uchiha’s eyes widened and his lips thinned dangerously into a strained line. “What were you doing in the Forbidden forest?”

“I…” Kakashi hesitated.

“You understand that the Forbidden forest is forbidden to all students, hence its name? And especially so at a dangerous time like this. It is fortunate that you did not find yourself face-to-face with a Lethifold, or else-”

“We did, sir,” Obito spoke up.

“You- what?”

“We saw a Lethifold.”

Kakashi then told a brief summary of the events that had occurred in the forest. A stunned silence followed his words. Professor Uchiha looked stricken.

“I do not fully understand the situation, but that is not my concern right now,” he said slowly, his eyes glinting dangerously.

“Sasori! Izumo!” he barked at a pair of fourth-year Slytherins, who were trying to walk past him as quickly as possible. They jumped when their names were called and spun around, regarding Professor Uchiha with apprehension, as though he was about to chide them on the spot. “Take this student to the hospital wing.”

Kakashi and Obito transferred Rin to the two Slytherins.

“The two of you.” He glared down at them, nostrils flaring up in suppressed fury. “Are in serious trouble. I will deal with you later. For now, lead me to where you’ve left Orochimaru.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There’ll probably two more chapters to go! Thank you for reading <3


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Change of plan guys, this is the last chapter! I decided to squash everything into this chapter and it’s almost 15k words. I hope it’s not too much to read at once lol

The pair of students led Professor Uchiha down the path they’d just came from. Once they'd entered the forest, the professor ordered them to take out their wands; they obeyed. The professor’s beady eyes shifted around as they manoeuvred their way through the dark foliage. Some of the low branches whipped against their shoulders and the mossy track muffled their footsteps. The sepulchral silence pressed down upon them heavily. They pushed through an opening where two trees parted, arriving at the place where Rin was stunned.

Kakashi glanced about, trying to remember the direction Orochimaru had sped off to. The forest was quiet, much too quiet, and Kakashi found himself frowning as he suddenly remembered the loud struggles of the gamekeeper and wondered why he couldn’t hear his cries anymore. They walked a little farther on, before Kakashi stopped completely, staring in front of him in shock. “He’s not here,” he announced, his voice sounding hollow.

Upon hearing these words, Professor Uchiha slid forward and immediately positioned himself in front of the students, his wand pointing in front of him as his eyes darted around the primordial forest. “Homenum Revelio,” he muttered.

Two low glows of light appeared a little way to their left, just beside an tall, ancient tree.

“Keep close,” Professor Uchiha instructed and they walked towards the two specks of light that guided them towards the nearest human presence.

The floating balls wafted farther away as they approached, sometimes turning to lead them in a different direction. Eventually, a soft whimper could be heard. The spell disappeared as soon as they entered a jarring scene.

Orochimaru was pacing about, his feet making soft, rustling sounds as they crushed the damp leaves on the ground. A small silver ball of light whisked about beside him and it took Kakashi a while to realise that it was a patronus in the form of a fox. The whimpers grew louder and Kakashi turned his gaze over to a large mass situated a few feet away on the ground. He gasped loudly, revulsion penetrating his gut. A woman was struggling on the floor, a Lethifold much larger than the one he’d encountered was engulfing her entire body. He couldn’t see her face. The witch struggled, her hands desperately clawing against the heavy velvet flesh of the Lethifold, but the creature would not budge.

Orochimaru had stopped pacing at the sound of Kakashi’s gasp. He whirled around, wand pointing directly at the three of them, teeth bared and a low growl escaping his lips.

“Petrificus Totalus!” Professor Uchiha cried and instantly, Orochimaru’s entire frame stiffened into a straight rod, his limbs sticking to his body like glue.

His eyes bulging and his scowl still etched on his face, he fell back onto the ground. He lay there, unmoving. The silver fox vanished.

“Professor,” Obito tried to catch the Head of Slytherin’s attention. He pointed to the dark mass on the ground.

It had gone still. The Lethifold was still wrapped around a human-shaped figure, the surface of its skin rippling slightly.

Professor Uchiha swiftly pointed his wand at the creature and uttered, “Expecto Patronum.”

A Runespoor emerged from the end of his wand and ferociously snaked towards the Lethifold. The Dark creature recoiled at the sudden burst of light from the patronus and immediately unwrapped itself from the witch, slinking away into the depths of the forest in the blink of an eye.

“It’s Professor Utatane!” Obito cried as soon as he saw the pale face of the woman lying motionless on the ground.

They rushed over to her side. Professor Uchiha gently placed a hand on the side of her neck.

“Is she dead?” Kakashi asked fearfully, staring at the blueish undertones of her skin and the large bruises covering her body.

“She’s still alive,” Professor Uchiha announced curtly. “But barely. We have to bring her back to the castle.” He stood up, frowning slightly as he concentrated, his lips mouthing silent words and another patronus shot out of his wand, going back the way they’d came from. “I’ve asked for Professor Tsunade to come over,” he explained to the students.

The headmistress arrived much faster than Kakashi had estimated, her concerned face appearing from behind the bushes.

“Oh my goodness.” Her eyes widened as she saw Professor Utatane. “What happened here, Fugaku?”

“A Lethifold attack,” he responded simply.

“She’s out cold,” Professor Tsunade studied Professor Utatane’s unconscious form. “But she’s still breathing so it hasn’t managed to asphyxiate her completely. The culprit-?”

Professor Uchiha pointed wordlessly at Orochimaru, who was lying as still as stone on the ground, face contorted into a gargoyle lour and his eyes darting to each of their faces furiously.

“Right,” Professor Tsunade said weakly. “You’ll explain everything to me later. Right now, we need to get them up to the castle.”

Professor Uchiha nodded and pointed his wand at Professor Utatane. He murmured softly, “Mobilicorpus.”

Instantly, as though a puppeteer had tugged on invisible strings attached to Professor Utatane’s body, she straightened into an upright position, her feet a foot above the ground and her toes pointing downwards.

Obito and Kakashi stood up, watching with fascination as Professor Uchiha did the same to Orochimaru, his stiff figure floating alongside Professor Utatane’s. Orochimaru’s eyes were rolling around angrily. The fixed scowl on his face would’ve looked comical if it wasn’t such a dire situation.

“Keep your wands out, boys,” Professor Tsunade warned. “We don’t know how many of these creatures Orochimaru has bred in this forest.”

They moved quietly, but quickly through the forest, the silence broken only by the soft crunch of twigs on the floor as they stepped over the debris. They emerged onto the grounds sooner than Kakashi had expected. He looked back as soon as they left the shadows of the trees, shuddering when he saw the dark, intimidating thickets and making a mental promise to himself never to step into the forest again.

They quickly headed up to the headmistress’ office, heads turning to glance curiously at the odd group as they hastily made their way past the many students.

“Hippogriff,” Professor Tsunade said to the gargoyle guarding the office door.

The stone creature stepped aside with a low grunt, exposing the door to the headmistress’ office and they entered the circular room. A noisy babble rose as the numerous portraits lining the walls began to whisper excitedly when they saw the peculiar scene float in.

“Merlin’s beard, what’s going on, Tsunade?” the portrait of Sarutobi Hiruzen, Professor Tsunade’s predecessor, exclaimed, nudging his glasses higher up his nose.

The headmistress ignored the insistent queries from all the other portraits and turned to a single portrait – a middle-aged lady sitting in a posh armchair and filing her fingernails with a bored expression, as though such queer scenes unfolded before her eyes every other day.

“Nekobaa,” Professor Tsunade said and the woman in the portrait looked up, her short curls bouncing under her chin. “Please ask Minato to bring some Veritaserum into my office.”

The lady stared expressionlessly at Professor Tsunade for a while, before nodding; she delicately placed her nail file on the small table beside her and got up from her armchair, disappearing through the frame of the portrait.

Professor Tsunade turned to the waiting group, all of whom were watching her. “We have a serious situation in our hands,” she addressed the group. “I believe I need to hear the full story from the students, as well as you, Fugaku. I have sent for Minato to bring me some truth serum and I believe we may be able to hear Orochimaru’s side of the story as well.”

A sudden bang was heard and a large puff of green smoke ballooned out of the stone fireplace. Professor Tsunade watched calmly as Professor Namikaze got up and dusted the Floo powder off his robes. He strode over to the headmistress, reaching into his robes and taking out a small vial of clear liquid.

“You requested for this, headmistress?”

“Thank you, Minato.” She took the vial from him. “May I ask that you assist Professor Utatane here to St. Mungo's Hospital?”

“Yes, headmistress.”

Professor Namikaze waved his wand and Professor Utatane drifted over to him. He exited the office with the Herbology teacher in tow.

“Please have a seat,” Professor Tsunade directed the rest of them to a set of armchairs. “Fugaku, would you please explain the situation to me?”

The professor recounted the events precisely, telling her how he’d chanced upon the two boys carrying a stunned student and had told him about Lethifolds and Orochimaru and Stunning spells. He told her everything that occurred right after, up until the part when Professor Tsunade arrived.

Professor Tsunade nodded slowly, looking deep in thought. She turned to the two boys sitting across her. “Before we hear Orochimaru’s story, I would like to gather your side of things. Please tell me everything that occurred in the Dark forest before you came up to the castle and met Professor Uchiha. It is crucial that you do not miss out on any minor detail,” Professor Tsunade stressed, her piercing gaze sweeping over the two students.

The pair of them looked at each other for a brief moment, before Kakashi began, “It was my fault, professor, I ran into the forest because I was feeling upset about something. My friend, Nohara Rin, followed me in. She's the one who got stunned-”

“Nohara Rin, you say?” Professor Tsunade’s eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Where is she now?”

“She’s been taken to the hospital wing,” replied Kakashi.

“Nohara Rin. We’ll have to inform her parents immediately.” She mused, before suddenly sitting up. She leant forwards. “Please continue.”

Kakashi launched into a lengthy recount. He told Professor Tsunade everything, up until the part when he and Obito met Professor Uchiha. The silence was heavy after that.

“Obito,” she turned to the Slytherin. “How did you find Kakashi?”

“I…” Obito glanced at the Ravenclaw, whose pale face had turned red. “Did something that upset him. Accidentally. I heard from a friend of Rin’s afterwards, that Kakashi and Rin had gone into the forest. So I went to look for him- them. I used the Human-presence-revealing spell and it led me to them.”

The headmistress nodded slowly. "A lot has happened here and we are still not sure how the events came to be. However, I believe we may be able to get our answers from Orochimaru."

The headmistress turned to the gamekeeper, her stern eyes boring into him coldly. She raised her wand. “Incarcerous,” her clear voice echoed throughout the circular office.

Thick ropes crawled over Orochimaru’s body like the vines of a Venomous Tentacula. They bound him tightly, stretching across his chest and pressing his arms to his sides. Professor Tsunade reversed the full body-bind curse and Orochimaru hit the floor of the office with a loud thud, followed by a groan. She flicked her wand and the gamekeeper was brought to a chair. As soon as he realised that the curse had been lifted, he struggled against the ropes tied around his body, swearing loudly at everyone. Professor Tsunade swiftly uncorked the small vial containing Veritaserum, reached over and forced the small drops of liquid through his lips. The gamekeeper relaxed instantly, his jaw slackening and his eyes glazing over.

“What is your name?” Professor Tsunade interrogated.

“Orochimaru,” the groggy-looking gamekeeper slurred, his words sounding monotonous and warped.

“What is your occupation?”

“Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,” the gamekeeper iterated without hesitation.

“Tell me everything that happened today, including the reasons and motivations behind it and the events leading up to it,” Professor Tsunade ordered.

Taking a deep breath, Orochimaru launched into a flat-toned monologue, “I used to be a talented student at Castelobruxo School for Magic, being one of the more gifted wizards and having an affinity for Magizoology. I received many awards from the school, my greatest achievement being the Award for Special Academic Achievement in the field of Magizoology. I knew I was better than everyone else and I was keen to show my greatness. Many students used to mock me for my appearance, saying that I looked like a woman and was too crazy to be as great as I claimed. I began to plan my revenge, to show them what I was really capable of. My school is located in a big rainforest, where all sorts of magical creatures can be found. I began to tame some of them, learning their ways and slowly discovering how to make them obey me and do my bidding. In my fifth year, when the opportunity presented itself, I unleashed these creatures into the school. There was chaos, mayhem, and everyone was afraid of me. That was the happiest day of my life.”

Orochimaru gave a lopsided grin before continuing in the same dead tone, “But the Ministry did not acknowledge my powers for greatness – they deemed it foolishness and I was expelled from the school. My wand was snapped into two and I was stripped of the privilege of becoming a fully-trained wizard. I was angry and I vowed to myself that I would seek revenge on the people that took away my right to have powers. I worked all kinds of jobs, saving up so that I could one day carry out my plans. I found a job at Hogwarts, where the sympathetic headmistress thought I should be given a second chance. I showed remorse and she bought the excuses I gave. She made me Keeper and Grounds of Hogwarts. I detested the job; I was the lowest in the hierarchy and no teacher or student ever gave me the respect I deserve. I was equivalent to a squib, even though I was far superior to them, for I had magical abilities. But I told myself that this was just the beginning and I would soon have my revenge on all of wizardkind. Hence, I held on to that thought and many years later, I came up with the perfect plan. I imported a couple of Lethifolds illegally from the Castelobruxo rainforest. It was fairly easy, smuggling them into the grounds. I have managed to tame them without the use of magic back when I was still a student at Castelobruxo, so this was no difficult feat. I brought them in through the secret passageway connecting the Shrieking Shack to the Whomping Willow and set them loose into the forest. It was perfect. People rarely entered the forest and hence, they could remain hidden. The two Lethifolds began to mate and eventually, created a small colony of Lethifolds. The colony grew rapidly and the creatures soon became hungry. I started to fear them a little, thought that their hunger would make them blind to their own master and I put up certain precautions around my hut.

“I didn’t want anyone to find out about them, not when I wasn’t ready to carry out my plan yet, so I deterred the few students who liked to lurk around the edge of the forest. My Lethifolds were rapidly becoming starved and I had to feed them. I brought them out through the same passageway under the Whomping Willow and let them attack the sleeping inhabitants in some of the nearby homes. This went on for a few nights, until word got round about the Lethifolds. The Ministry became alert and it was too risky to bring them to the muggle villages and hence, I settled for Hogsmeade. I noted that the security at Hogsmeade had gotten rather strict and I had to search for ways to get around it. Many wizards had conjured patronuses at their doorsteps at night and it was impossible for my Lethifolds to get in. I sent one in through another secret passageway leading from Hogwarts straight into Honeydukes and it killed the Honeydukes owner. After that, I knocked out a few unwary tourists and let my Lethifolds consume them. I took their wands afterwards; I felt safer with them, for I could ward off my Lethifolds with a Patronus charm if they ever disobeyed me. My Lethifolds were growing bigger, thicker and stronger. When the students came back from the holidays, there was a mass announcement on the attacks. Senju Tsunade said that the Lethifolds had been spotted in the forest. The security at Hogwarts tightened considerably. It didn’t affect me much, but it irritated me a lot due to the inconvenience. I had to hide my Lethifolds in the Shrieking Shack while the Ministry officials scoured the forest.

"I was ready to take my revenge on the wizards that looked down on me. I was ready to unleash the Lethifolds into the castle; I wanted to do it as soon as possible, but Uchiha Fugaku, the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, began to make his nightly rounds around the castle grounds. I couldn’t do it because of him.”

Orochimaru scowled, his features twisted into an ugly look of contempt. “I wanted to kill him, but it wasn't feasible, for he was the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and was presumably more skilled than me in duelling. It wasn’t worth setting the Lethifolds on one man and getting caught by the headmistress, either. So I waited for the perfect opportunity to carry out my revenge. My Lethifolds were getting restless and they didn’t want to stay inside the forest any longer. The Herbology teacher, Utatane Koharu, almost found out about them when she ventured into the forest one day to collect food for her Snargaluff. Luckily, I managed to chase her out.”

Orochimaru took a deep breath, before he continued mechanically, “And then one day, a pair of students entered the Forbidden forest. I was doing my daily rounds around the forest, checking for intruders, when I heard raised voices. It sounded like a boy and a girl. I edged closer to them and recognised the boy as the student I had warned off a few months ago. His friend was assuring him that his boyfriend had kissed a witch due to the effects of a love potion.”

He snorted. “I thought this was perfect. Two amateur wizards venturing into the forest alone, where the Lethifolds are rumoured to be. My Lethifolds were famished and I hadn’t dared to bring them out for a while; it was too risky to feed them while everyone was on their toes. I stunned the friend with one of the wands I collected from my victims and the boy disarmed me. I ran and he chased me. He levitated me by my ankles and demanded to know what I was doing in the forest. The stupid boy was thinking of bringing the headmistress to me and when I told him that he should worry about his friend getting attacked by my hungry Lethifolds, he raced back to where his friend was. I was left dangling in the air, trying to escape. I couldn't, for I had no wand with me. After a few long minutes, Utatane Koharu appeared.” He gave a contemptuous smirk. “She was searching for the leaping toadstools she’d discovered the other day. She saw me and let me down immediately and then asked me what happened. I lied, telling her a mysterious man had casted a spell from behind my back and I suspected that he was the wizard behind all these attacks. She asked me where I’d last seen him and I pointed behind her, saying that he disappeared through the trees. She turned and I tackled her, taking her wand from her. She was confused, said she didn’t understand what was going on.”

Orochimaru guffawed loudly, a triumphant look appearing on his face. “I felt so powerful at that moment – I had a wand and she didn’t. I saw one of my Lethifolds approaching us. It was ravenous and so I let it strangle Utatane Koharu. I conjured a patronus just in case; because my Lethifolds were getting stronger and I didn’t want them to hurt me accidentally. All was going well, until Uchiha Fugaku arrived with that irritating boy and his boyfriend. Uchiha Fugaku petrified me and sent the Lethifold away. I was so furious. This was the second time he was interfering with my plans. The headmistress arrived and we were sent to the headmistress’ office. I have failed to take my revenge on the wizards that looked down on me, but one day I shall.”

He stopped talking and like a rag doll, his head rolled over to the side.

Professor Tsunade turned to Professor Uchiha, who was still staring at Orochimaru with a look of utter disbelief. “Fugaku, I need you to tighten the defences around the school right now. The Lethifolds have no one controlling them at the moment and they might attempt to break into the castle given by how famished they are. Order all the students to stay in the castle and let the staff know of the situation.”

He nodded curtly and got up, quickly striding out of the office, his robes whipping in the air behind him.

“How many Lethifolds are there currently?” Professor Tsunade asked Orochimaru in a hard voice.

Orochimaru’s neck straightened. “Ten,” he drawled before his head slumped to the side again.

Professor Tsunade’s lips thinned into a line. She got up and quickly walked over to one of the portraits. “Darui.”

The chatty wizard, who’d been gossiping quietly with his neighbouring portraits, jolted and twirled towards her.

“Yes, headmistress.”

“Please inform the Minister for Magic that there is a very urgent matter at Hogwarts that requires his attention. Tell him that we have apprehended the culprit behind the Lethifold attacks,” she instructed in a clear voice. “And while you’re at the Ministry, please also inform Mr. Nohara that his daughter has been injured in a Lethifold attack and she shall be sent to St. Mungo’s if her condition is serious. However, I doubt that would be the case. I have yet to hear from Madam Mei, which means she should be successful in treating her.”

“Right away, headmistress.” The portrait saluted and jogged through the side of his frame.

Professor Tsunade then turned to the two boys, who were looking completely befuddled. “You have been through a lot today. However, this does not excuse you from receiving any punishment for your extremely careless behaviour – venturing into the forest without a teacher. I will write to both of your parents and you will have to serve detention for Professor Uchiha every Friday evening for a month. I will be speaking to the school tomorrow and certain restrictive rules will be taken away after the Ministry has scoured the area and has removed every Lethifold from the grounds.” She relaxed into a kind smile when she saw the gloomy looks on their faces. “For now, please rest. If Madam Mei allows for it, you may check in with your friend, Rin. Please put this matter behind you. You may go.”

Obito and Kakashi left the headmistress’ office quietly. The moving spiral staircase brought them to the third floor and they made their way down to the ground floor, where the hospital wing was.

“Some day, huh?” Obito commented after a while.

“Some day,” Kakashi echoed.

They fell silent again, too exhausted to speak.

They entered the hospital wing and Madam Mei rushed over to them. Her expression immediately turned stern when she spotted Obito next to Kakashi. “So this was why you ran off right after Minato and I healed you?”

Obito scratched the back of his head and grimaced. “Sorry, ma’am, I panicked.”

Kakashi’s eyes widened and he looked worriedly at the Slytherin. He’d nearly forgotten about what had happened during the game. “Oh right, you were hurt.”

Obito gave him a smile. “Don’t worry. It was just a mild concussion and Madam Mei here fixed me up in a heartbeat,” he said reassuringly.

Madam Mei thinned her lips before eventually shaking her head. “Alright, I’ll let this one slide. But you still need to get some rest, especially after your little adventure in the Forbidden forest.”

Kakashi and Obito didn’t need to ask how she knew. The two Slytherins who had been asked to send Rin to the hospital wing probably had overheard their conversation with Professor Uchiha in the corridor.

“I’ve treated her and given her a Sleeping Draught to sleep the headache away.” Madam Mei told them as she gestured at Rin’s bed. “Those Stunning spells have quite nasty side-effects. But you don’t have to worry, she’ll be fine in two days. Be careful not to wake her up, will you?” She eyed them keenly.

“We won’t,” Kakashi promised.

She nodded and left the hospital wing.

Kakashi turned to Obito. “You should go back to your dorm and get some rest.”

“I’m really fine, Kakashi.“ The Slytherin gave him another reassuring smile. “Let me accompany you, okay?”

Kakashi frowned at him, still not convinced, but Obito just took his hand and led him to the third-year’s bed.

Kakashi looked down at his friend’s face, taking in the paler-than-usual shade of her skin and the beads of sweat forming like droplets of condensation on her forehead. He took the damp cloth placed on her bedside table and dabbed Rin’s forehead with it carefully, his other hand still encased in Obito’s warm one.

“She’ll be fine,” the Slytherin assured him gently.

Kakashi nodded, placing the item back on the table.

“I know I’ve said this before, but,” Obito bit his lip, hesitant to continue. “I really am sorry about the thing with Anko. I don’t know why I didn’t suspect a thing when I took that flask from her, but I guess I was just fazed by all the confusion and celebrations happening around me. You have no idea how terrible I felt after Professor Namikaze gave me that antidote and I came to my senses. I was so worried when I heard that you’d run off to the Forbidden forest. I was literally shaking with worry.”

“It’s okay. I overreacted.” Kakashi half-smiled.

“No, you didn’t. You have every right to be upset. I should’ve been more careful.” Obito licked his lips. “I might’ve gotten a little too excited the day you told me that you like me, and celebrated it with a few other Slytherins in our common room. I know you think they all don’t like you, but some of them are genuinely happy for me. Anko was there too, so I thought she would give up after knowing that we were dating. But I should’ve known better than to underestimate her.” Obito squeezed Kakashi’s hand gently. “I’m really sorry, Kakashi. I promise I’ll be more careful and this will never happen again. I’ll talk to her after this.”

Kakashi shook his head slightly.“ It’s really okay, Obito. I’m not upset about that anymore.” He looked down at Rin’s sleeping face dismally. “It's my fault too. If I hadn’t run into the forest, we wouldn’t have been in this mess.”

“This isn’t your fault, Kakashi.” The Ravenclaw turned to stare into Obito’s warm eyes. “You were upset. You didn’t know what you were doing.”

“It was foolish of me,” he lamented.

“It was brave of you,” Obito said firmly. “What you did afterwards. You confronted Orochimaru.”

Kakashi snorted, “Only you would see that as an act of bravery.” But he smiled just the same.

“I see you in your true form. You are a brave wizard, Kakashi, and you’re always so hard on yourself. Don’t put yourself down so much. You’re a wonderful person and the best boyfriend I could ever ask for.” Obito smiled, bringing Kakashi’s hand to his lips and kissing the knuckle ever so softly.

Kakashi swallowed. Obito’s words and action evoked a thousand different feelings in his heart, as vibrant as the colours of spring the trees outside promised. The Slytherin knew how to make him feel like he deserved everything in this whole damn universe. “Thank you,” he whispered and the Slytherin looked up at him, the smile on his face growing softer, warmer, like melted honey.

Obito leant in slowly, his gaze lowered to Kakashi’s lips. The Ravenclaw smiled, immediately placing both of his hands on Obito’s shoulders and closing his eyes. Taking it as an invitation, Obito sneaked an arm around Kakashi’s waist while his other hand reached up to cup the younger’s face, pulling him into an embrace and capturing his lips in a tender kiss. Obito took his sweet time to savour each of Kakashi’s lips, sucking gently on them one by one. A whimper betrayed the silver-haired boy’s throat when he felt Obito’s tongue draw over his lower lip before slipping into his mouth ravenously, the Slytherin angling his head to deepen the kiss and his nose brushing against Kakashi’s cheek. Kakashi’s fingers curled ever so slightly and his body melted into Obito’s hold like a curve.

They parted with a mess of heavy breaths, Obito caressing Kakashi’s flushed cheek gently and gazing at him with so much love as though he’d never get enough of Kakashi in this lifetime.

Kakashi felt absolutely light-headed.

***

“Isn’t he the guy who ran into the Dark forest yesterday?”

“Oh my goodness, yeah. I heard he led his friend into the forest and his boyfriend followed them afterwards.”

“What if he’s actually Orochimaru’s accomplice and he was purposely leading them to the Lethifolds?”

“Nah, I don’t think so. He almost got eaten up by one himself.”

“Hey, at least thanks to him they were able to catch the culpirt.”

“Inabi and Sasori saw them yesterday.” Kakashi didn’t have to look up to know that snicker had come from a Slytherin this time. The guy hadn’t even bothered to lower his voice, as though he’d meant for Kakashi to hear him.” I heard he couldn’t cast the patronus charm and Obito had to save him.”

“He’s a half-blood, what can you expect?”

“What does Obito see in him, anyways?”

Kakashi strode past the muttering lining the corridors and walked into the Great Hall. He tried to ignore the pointed looks and the loud whispers that followed him everywhere he went, but it was impossible to block the words out. He knew they meant no harm; excluding a few snide remarks from the Slytherins who already didn’t like him very much in the first place, most of them were simply curious about what had really happened, but it still stung in a way. He sat himself right across from Tenzo, well aware of the furtive glances shot in his direction from his fellow Ravenclaws sitting along the table.

“I’m going to pay Rin a visit right after lunch. Want to come along?” Tenzo asked cheerfully.

“I have Potions. You go ahead. I’ll probably pop by late afternoon or something,” Kakashi mumbled as he nibbled on a piece of toast.

Tenzo observed him quietly for a while, expression evidently torn, as though he was trying to withhold something. Unable to hold back any longer, he blurted out, “How were the Lethifolds like?”

Kakashi put down his piece of toast and glanced up at the third-year. “How were they like?” he repeated Tenzo’s question.

“Yeah,” the younger boy breathed. “Were they scary? Were they big?”

“Fairly big,” Kakashi recalled, shuddering a little when he pictured the large, black, cloak-like creatures.

“I heard the Lethifold had crawled on top of you and was already consuming half your body,” Tenzo told him in an awe-struck voice.

Kakashi frowned at the amazed third-year. “Where did you get that from?”

“I heard it from Kurenai," started Tenzo. "Who heard it from her friend, Izumi, who heard it from-”

“Okay, nevermind,” Kakashi cut in. “Anyway, that’s not true. You know how rumours get warped around Hogwarts.”

“Yes.” Tenzo looked particularly disappointed, as though he’d been hoping for the rumours to be true.

The two returned to their meal without saying another word. He could still feel the stares of the students walking past the Ravenclaw table and the quiet murmurs of his surroundings. It was a very uncomfortable few minutes for him. Just then, a loud tapping noise riveted his attention to the podium at the front of the Great Hall. Professor Tsunade was tapping on the owl lecturn with her wand, demanding the entire hall’s attention.

“I apologise for interrupting your breakfast-time, but I have an important announcement to make. Yesterday, three students ventured into the Forbidden forest without permission, leading to a dangerous encounter with a couple of Lethifolds. One of the students was injured and is now being treated by Madam Mei in the hospital wing. Now, let this be a lesson to all of you not to enter the Forbidden forest without supervision, for any reason, in the future. It is a highly dangerous place and houses many dangerous creatures within its depths,” the headmistress addressed.

She swept a stern eye over the silent mass of students once, before continuing, “The culprit behind the attacks has been apprehended and the Ministry will decide what to do with him next. The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures arrived yesterday and has scoured every inch of the Forbidden forest to capture every one of Orochimaru’s Lethifolds. It is now safe to say that the forest is clear of these creatures. In light of this, I will now lift certain rules that have become unnecessary with the apprehension of the culprit and the removal of the creatures. Quidditch Captains may book for more practices each week and the seven p.m. curfew will be lifted. Hogsmeade trips are expected to carry on as per normal.”

A loud cheer erupted at this and the headmistress smiled slightly, before lightly tapping on her podium and the noise subsided.

“A few staff changes have been made. Following his arrest, I have dismissed Orochimaru from his post as Hogwarts’ gamekeeper and I have recruited a new gamekeeper in his place. His name is Bee, and I hope you cooperate with him with regards to all matters pertaining to the grounds.”

A joyful-looking man stood up on the extreme left side of the table and gave a small smile in response to the scattered applause from the students.

“In addition,” Professor Tsunade continued after the clapping had ceased. “Professor Utatane has taken ill due to an unfortunate episode of a Lethifold attack, therefore, Professor Aburame Shibi will be taking over her place as both Herbology teacher and Head of Hufflepuff house until Professor Utatane is deemed fit enough to continue work.”

A man with very spiky short hair and mustache stood up on the far right of the teacher's table and gave a small nod. Once he’d sat down, the headmistress faced the school again, concluding with a simple, “This is the end of my announcement. You may continue with your meals.” She stepped down from the podium and returned to her seat.

The bell rang. Tenzo gave Kakashi a quick, “See you,” before disappearing towards the Herbology greenhouses. Kakashi headed for his first class for that day: History of Magic. It was a very dry two hours of lesson and the Ravenclaw barely managed to keep his eyes open throughout the entirety of the professor’s monotonous lecturing. The rest of the day wasn’t any better. Besides the fact that it was Monday and his schedules at the start of the week were always very draining, he had to deal with the constant whispering that followed him wherever he went and it made him incredibly stressed. Many people, including those he’d never spoken to before, tried to get him to retell his experience in the forest. He tried to be as brief as possible about it; sighing in relief whenever the professors ordered them to stop talking during class. After the first two lessons of being bombarded with questions, he finally gathered the sense to sit in front during class, where he knew no one would dare to talk to him while being in full view of the teachers. He hadn’t met Obito yet, but from the few glimpses he’d caught of the Slytherin, he could see that he wasn’t having it any better either.

Lunch eventually arrived, after a dreary morning that seemed to crawl by at snail’s pace, and he plopped himself down at the Ravenclaw table with a loud sigh, receiving a questioning look from Tenzo.

They ate their meals in silence. The whispering had ceased somewhat, but people were still shooting him curious looks, their burning gazes carrying the weight of their curiosity. Once they were done with their meals, Tenzo headed directly for the hospital wing, telling Kakashi he’d let Rin know he’d be popping by later in the afternoon. Kakashi waved him off and went down to the dungeons for his Potions class. The lesson went as usual; their practical task was as tough as ever. At the end of the class, Professor Namikaze reminded them yet again, that their end-of-year examinations were approaching. Kakashi bit down on his bottom lip nervously; this would be their last exam before they were to embark on their O.W.Ls year.

“The Ordinary Wizarding Levels are to be taken very seriously,” Professor Namikaze spoke to the entire class once they were done with their practical lesson. “Many students have taken the exam lightly and realised much too late that they were not catching up well with the rest of the class, resulting in a disappointing set of results at the end of the year. I must stress that the O.W.Ls workload is immensely difficult. Early preparation is crucial if you want to achieve your Outstandings. In fact, your O.W.Ls preparation should ideally start now. This exam determines the subjects you are eligible to take for your Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests, more commonly known as your N.E.W.Ts, and the subjects you take may very well determine your career path. So it is good to know, at this point, what kind of career you are interested in. My office door is open to any Ravenclaw who wishes to discuss his or her career choice with me.”

They were dismissed immediately after that short address.

“What Professor Namikaze said got me thinking,” Kakashi heard Tokuma ponder behind him as the Ravenclaws left the dungeons to head towards their next class. “I’ve never thought about my future. I don’t know what I want to do yet.”

“I want to be an Auror,” Ebisu revealed.

“An Auror? That department’s dying. You don’t get called in unless something happens, and it’s usually something small, like that Lethifold incident that happened yesterday,” Tokuma pointed out.

“That’s why I want to be one. You don’t get to do much if you’re an Auror these days. You can slack off in the Auror office with a cup of coffee and get paid for practically doing nothing,” Ebisu responded.

Tokuma chuckled. “I don’t want to work in the Ministry,” he stated. “Too many stuck-ups.”

They rounded a corner, the torches drawing out long shadows behind them. Kakashi was just about to quicken his pace so that he could get to his next lesson faster, when Tokuma called out, “Hey, Kakashi!”

He stopped and turned around, shooting the two chattering boys an inquisitive look.

“We’re discussing our career choices,” Tokuma informed him brightly. “Ebisu wants to be an Auror. What are you thinking of becoming?”

Kakashi fell into stride beside the two boys. “A Healer,” he replied.

Ebisu gave a low whistle while Tokuma repeated in awe, “A Healer? That’s a very demanding career. You can’t get anything below an Exceeds Expectations for your N.E.W.Ts”

“I know.”

“It won’t be a problem for Kakashi. He’s a genius,” Ebisu remarked.

“Why a Healer though?” Tokuma questioned. “Your mum was a Chaser for the Harpies right? Why not just continue with Quidditch?”

Kakashi glanced at his dormmate before replying, “I don’t have that much of an interest in Quidditch.”

“You play well though,” Ebisu complimented. “And I’ve seen you ride that Firebolt II. It’s a splendid broom. Where did you get it?”

“Obito gave it to him.” A voice was heard from behind them. The fourth-years turned their heads and were met with Yahiko. The older Ravenclaw approached the trio, giving Kakashi a knowing smile.

“Damn. He must really like you,” Ebisu said in awe.

“Or he’s just bloody rich,” Tokuma interjected.

“Or both.” The sixth-year Ravenclaw said. He sighed exaggeratedly in an wistful way. “Wish I had someone to give me things like this.”

Ebisu and Tokuma guffawed loudly and Kakashi strode alongside them awkwardly. Yahiko turned back to the dungeon for his Potions class and the fourth-years left the castle together, heading out to the grounds and making their way over to the pumpkin patch, where Professor Jiraiya was waiting for them.

“I’m so glad the snow’s melting,” muttered Ebisu as they slushed over the muddy ground. “I don’t think I’ll be able to survive tonight’s Divination outing if it’s below zero.”

“Divination outing?” Kakashi quizzed.

“Professor Yamanaka’s bringing us to the mountains on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. We're going to watch the planetary movements and make our predictions from our observations,” he told him.

“That sounds cool,” Kakashi commented.

“It isn’t.” Ebisu shook his head. His boots kicked the pebbles on the ground as they travelled down the dirt path. “Divination’s a bore and the professor is a crackpot.”

Kakashi remained silent as his classmates chortled. They reached the pumpkin patch and after a short instruction from Professor Jiraiya, fell into a single file and followed him to the edges of the forest. Kakashi tried to quench his nervousness by reassuring himself that he was among his classmates and there was a teacher present so there would be no reason for him to get attacked. Even so, he still felt extremely anxious whenever a low branch brushed against his shoulder and he kept jumping at the sound of breaking twigs.

They were back to examining unicorns. Professor Jiraiya seemed to be particularly enthusiastic about showing his students the blessing of unicorn foals he’d gathered. The boys were allowed to pat them this time, for the young creatures were much more trusting towards human males than their older counterparts. Kakashi stroked the gold coat of a pretty foal, feeling the smooth, wispy strands under his fingers. He admired the soft golden glow they emitted, which wrapped everything around them in a dazzling shimmer. The unicorns were stunningly beautiful and he found himself completely unable to look away. They ended their Care of Magical Creatures lesson in high spirits, tittering loudly as they clambered back up to the castle. Kakashi waved Ebisu and Tokuma off, choosing instead to trudge in the opposite direction to head towards the hospital wing. He entered the familiar, warm interior and spotted Rin lying on the same bed she was on yesterday, except, there was another student sitting by his bedside.

“Hello,” Kakashi greeted the familiar back.

Genma turned around and once he saw Kakashi, quickly got up. “She’s asleep,” he informed Kakashi as the Ravenclaw stepped closer to his friend’s bed.

Kakashi stared down at Rin’s face, observing the slight blueish circles around her eyes, before turning back to Genma. “How is she?” he asked quietly.

“Madam Mei said she’s recovering, but she’s still a bit weak. The Stunning spell hit her straight in the chest.”

Kakashi nodded, glancing down at his friend again. He saw Genma reach out to grab Rin’s hand in his peripheral vision and smiled. “She’s liked you since her first year, you know.”

“It was hard not to notice, honestly.” Genma mirrored his smile. “You have no idea how much it scared me when I heard that she was taken to the hospital wing. I should’ve come with her when she ran after you yesterday.” He added after a moment.

Kakashi bit his lip. “I’m sorry. This wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t been so stupid.”

“It’s not your fault, Kakashi,” the Gryffindor assured him. “If anything, I should thank you for getting there in time to save her.”

Kakashi noticed Genma was holding a piece of paper in his other hand. Opting to switch the topic, he asked, “What’s that?”

“Oh, this is a letter from my mother.” Genma gestured at the item in his hand. “I told my parents about Rin when I went back for Christmas.”

Kakashi raised his eyebrows in interest. “You did?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t tell Rin since my parents had said they needed some time to think over it. And this letter arrived today.” The Gryffindor Captain broke out into a grin. “I can’t wait to tell her.”

Judging from Genma’s positive countenance, Kakashi supposed it must’ve been a good news.

Genma continued holding Rin’s hand, his gaze never leaving the sleeping witch's face. The look in Genma’s eyes was one of deep concern and pure affection. Kakashi smiled, feeling genuinely happy for the two of them.

Deciding that his presence wasn’t needed at the moment, Kakashi said, “I’ll come back later then. Please take care of her.”

Genma flashed him a smile. “Don’t worry. I can assure you she’s in good hands.”

Kakashi returned his smile and left the hospital wing. He climbed up the Ravenclaw tower, mind intent on receiving a quiet night of study since his dormmates had already set off for their Divination excursion. At times like this, he felt gratified that he had chosen not to take Divination, even though he sometimes felt intrigued by the subject and longed to sit in during one of their classes just to find out what precisely that branch of magic entailed. Ebisu always ranted about the subject in their dormitory, never failing to call Professor Yamanaka a derogatory name whenever he did so.

Kakashi twisted the doorknob and swung the door to his dormitory open. He was instantly faced with a familiar back view of a particular Slytherin standing by the window. Kakashi stood there for a moment, utterly surprised at the unexpected intrusion. Obito did not turn around; he appeared to be too preoccupied with staring out of the window. It was nightfall and the dormitory was unlit, plunging most of the room into darkness, except for the pale, muted moonlight streaming in from the tall window just beside Kakashi’s four-poster bed. He closed the door behind him with a quiet click, observing the Slytherin's dark silhouette keenly. Somehow, the lack of light created a very dreamlike appearance, Obito's outline contrasted softly with the night sky outside.

“What are you doing here?” Kakashi asked, his eyes on the silent back of the figure standing by the window.

Obito turned; he looked ravishing in a striped navy blue sweater, dark, faded jeans hugging his legs perfectly and his dark hair falling into forehead in a charming way. He smiled, slipping his hands into his jean pockets.

“The view is stunning,” he marveled, turning back slightly to look out at the misty grounds.

Kakashi slowly treaded over to stand beside him and looked out at the vast lake, the inky canopies of the trees in the Forbidden forest, the Quidditch pitch and the Herbology gardens, all of which could be seen from the top of the Ravenclaw tower. A low opaque cloud hung over the tree tops in the Forbidden forest and Kakashi tore his eyes away from the dark, menacing trees, shivers running down his spine as he remembered his past dreadful experience in the forest’s depths.

“It is. I can never get enough of it,” he agreed. He turned to Obito and met the Slytherin’s warm smile; the crinkles around his right eye and cheek were deepened by the loving simper etched on his face.

“I can never get enough of this view,” he indicated, eyes boring into Kakashi.

Kakashi looked away, feeling a stifling blush creep up his neck. “How did you get in?” his voice cracked and he cleared his throat awkwardly.

“I answered the riddle, of course.”

Kakashi glanced back at Obito to see that he was wearing a proud smirk. He looked utterly pleased with himself.

“Who did you jinx?” Kakashi joked, hiding the surprise he felt at Obito’s ability to answer the bronze knocker’s riddle.

“You think so lowly of me,” Obito chuckled, before moving over to Kakashi’s four-poster bed. He flung the curtains apart, revealing Kakashi’s messy sheets and the crumpled eiderdown. He gave another chuckle.

“I was rushing this morning,” Kakashi defended, rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't have time to make the bed."

“I didn’t say anything,” Obito commented in amusement, before sitting down on Kakashi’s bed, one hand still holding the curtain apart. He grinned at the Ravenclaw, patting the space beside him. “Have a seat,” he said gently.

Kakashi blinked, taking in the sight of Obito perched on his bed, wrinkled blankets all around him and the moonlight creating subtle pools of white light around his figure.

“Are you nervous?” Obito teased. “Perhaps anxious about being on the same bed with me?”

Kakashi gulped. Not willing to let the Slytherin know that he was somewhat accurate, he struck his chin up and walked towards Obito, but he didn’t sit down. The inside of the canopy was lit with a dim, blue-tinted glow, the soft light filtering through the royal blue curtains.

Obito took both of Kakashi’s hands in his, his warm thumbs tracing soft circles on the back of his hands and he pulled the Ravenclaw towards him.

Kakashi found his legs being trapped between Obito’s knees. The curtains fell close behind them and they were encased in a quiet, faint luminescence. Kakashi stared at the shadows hovering in the depths of Obito’s eyes. The Slytherin stood up, his sudden action surprising Kakashi a little and the Ravenclaw leant back slightly at the extremely close proximity. His feet were still flanked between Obito's and their bodies were pressed together. Kakashi felt a warm tingle manifest every inch of his clothed skin that came into contact with Obito.

The Slytherin lifted a hand and gently brushed the silver strands out of his eyes, the sweet gesture sending flutters to Kakashi’s heart. “You are so beautiful,” he whispered delicately.

Kakashi let out a small snort, rolling his eyes at the hyperbolic pronouncement.

“I’m serious,” Obito insisted. His fingers trailed down the side of Kakashi’s face, touch barely there even though a blazing trail of tingles still erupted along his skin; they rested on his chin, his thumb caressing the small mole above Kakashi’s jawline. He cupped the Ravenclaw’s face precariously, as though he was holding a precious, irreplaceable heirloom. “You are the most beautiful person in the world. How did I get so lucky?”

Obito’s breath washed over Kakashi’s face like a sweet spring breeze, the minty scent penetrating his nostrils and Kakashi closed his eyes to just simply feel Obito’s touch and indulge in the smell of him. Kakashi inhaled his intoxicating scent—it was like an addictive pheromone that wrapped around his senses, a seductive scent that wafted from a broiling cauldron of Amortentia and enticed him with the most attractive aroma. He felt a gentle pair of lips capture his own.

They kissed gently, their lips moving like two fluttering petals brushing lightly against each other. Kakashi brought his hand up and gripped the back of Obito’s neck, tilting his head and deepening the kiss. He needed to inhale more of this boy whose touches sent a warm flame to ignite in his heart and whose entire presence drove him mad.

Obito’s hands were placed on his waist and he drew his boyfriend closer to him, their bodies pressed together inseparably, their frames fitting together like two perfect puzzle pieces. Kakashi felt secure in Obito’s grip, whose sturdy arms encapsulated him in a tender embrace.

The kiss grew more passionate, with Obito boldly swiping his tongue along Kakashi’s lips and the other parting them hungrily, letting the Slytherin explore every inch of his warm cavern. Kakashi sighed softly when Obito started rubbing his sides, his fingers dragging up the fabric of Kakashi’s sweater and crawling up his bare flesh. Obito caught Kakashi’s bottom lip in between his teeth, nibbling lightly, before they parted, a string of saliva connecting their reddened lips.

Kakashi opened his eyes, Obito’s half-lidded eyes and flushed cheeks a welcoming sight. The Slytherin lowered his dark gaze to Kakashi’s neck, a glint flashing across his eyes as he tilted his head, lips attacking Kakashi’s jawline. Kakashi closed his eyes feebly when Obito’s tongue drew a sensitive strip along Kakashi’s jaw and sank to his neck hungrily.

“Obito,” he breathed when the Slytherin sucked on the side of his neck, embedding a love-bite on his pale skin, and he brought his hand up to thread his fingers through Obito’s dark locks.

Obito’s hands, which were on his bare waist, started rubbing slow circles on his skin, descending and stopping once he reached the waistband of Kakashi’s jeans. His hands remained there on his hips. Kakashi gripped Obito’s hair a little more tightly when the Slytherin nibbled on Kakashi’s ear, the sensitive tingles going straight to his stomach.

“Obito,” he whispered again when Obito sucked harshly on his earlobe.

“I love it when you say my name,” the other growled, his teeth grazing against Kakashi’s neck.

Kakashi gulped. He boldly returned, “Why don’t you make me scream it?”

The Slytherin stopped leaving a trail of kisses down Kakashi’s neck, drawing his head back to stare at the Ravenclaw in surprise. “Really?” he gawked.

Kakashi nodded.

The Slytherin did not budge. “Are you sure?”

Frustration gripped the edges of Kakashi’s temperament. He nodded again, but when Obito continued to stare at him, he added, “I want you to take me.”

He blushed furiously, watching as the Slytherin slowly blinked, letting the words sink in. Then, without warning, Obito turned their positions around and lightly shoved Kakashi down onto the bed. He crawled over him, dark hair hanging over his deep, ravenous eyes.

Kakashi grabbed the front of Obito’s sweater and heart pounding feverishly, he pulled the Slytherin down and connected their lips once more, wildly embarking on a passionate kiss. Obito’s weight pressed down on him, his legs on either side of Kakashi’s. The Ravenclaw had wrapped an arm around Obito’s neck, his hand reaching up to grip his short tresses. Kakashi found himself liking the way the soft hair felt between his fingers. His other hand, which was placed on Obito’s chest, fearlessly skimmed down his stomach, catching Obito’s belt. His fingers played with the buckle, their lips never breaking apart as he unbuckled Obito’s belt, clumsily pulling the leather strap out of the loops.

A chuckle broke their kiss and Obito pulled back to gaze amusedly down at him.

“Looks like someone’s impatient,” he teased lightly when Kakashi tried to unbutton his jeans one-handedly.

Obito reached down, grabbed Kakashi’s hand and brought it up to his lips, giving it a soft kiss before leaving it at his side. He hoisted himself up to a kneeling position, nifty fingers quickly undoing his jeans and he slid them off in a flurry. He gripped the hems of his sweater and with a slight smirk, pulled it off. Kakashi’s eyes were immediately drawn to the slightly tanned chest, his gaze roaming down his entire torso and tracing the thin happy trail slinking down into the waistband of his boxers. He stared at the prominent bulge pulsing out the front of them. Obito crouched over Kakashi, his hands roaming up the latter’s sweater and pulling it up. He quickly took it off, before working with his jeans and boxers in a flash, those were thrown off too.

Obito’s eyes trailed over every inch of Kakashi’s pale skin, his beady gaze sweeping over the exposed flesh like a hawk eyeing its prey. “You’re so beautiful,” he spoke in a voice filled with adoration, as though laying his eyes on the most precious sight ever.

Kakashi turned red and squirmed slightly in embarrassment under Obito’s heavy, intense gaze. The Slytherin leant forwards, his dark hair brushing against Kakashi’s forehead and once again, captured his lips in a kiss. Their lips moved together ferociously, each as hungry as the other. Kakashi could feel a throbbing hard-on in Obito’s boxers and moaned slightly when the Slytherin rolled his hips up, rubbing Kakashi’s bare erection against his clothed one in tantalising contact. Obito’s thrusts became faster, his lower body heaving up to press his erection harshly against Kakashi’s and soon, the two were moaning slightly as they rubbed their members together gratingly.

“Ahh… Obito,” Kakashi moaned. “Just fuck me.”

Upon hearing those words, Obito stopped grinding his hips against Kakashi’s. He gave Kakashi’s swollen, red lips one last peck before sinking down, leaving a trail of kisses down Kakashi’s pale body. He stopped when he reached the younger’s chest, his eyes glancing up to stare directly into the Ravenclaw’s eyes as he licked one of his nubs in a slow, seductive manner. Kakashi grunted, his cock hardening and twitching slightly at the tease.

Obito smirked, clearly pleased with the reaction Kakashi was emitting. He licked his thumb, coating it generously with saliva, and took the neglected nipple between his now wet fingers, moving them in a circular motion and earning another sharp noise from the Ravenclaw. Kakashi brought a hand to his mouth to stifle it back, breathing harsher as he tried to desensitise himself to the wet coldness now brushing over his nipple.

“Don’t hold back. I want to hear you,” Obito said as he squeezed the sore red nub between his fingers and daringly take the other into his mouth, sucking it gently.

Kakashi whimpered. His hands moved to clutch at Obito’s shoulders while the latter swiped out his tongue over his nipple. Slow, wet, and firm, the Slytherin added more pressure, encasing the swollen nub between his lips and insistently pressing his tongue into the tip.

Whining louder as Obito once again licked his thumb and entertained the other nub, Kakashi spread his legs instinctively, pre-cum dripping from his cock. He grasped harder at Obito when the older switched to the other nipple, sucking much harder than before.

“O-Obito, Please,” he managed to say between his moans.

Obito leant up and shushed Kakashi in a low, teasing tone. “Let me take care of you, okay?” He parted Kakashi’s legs, and the Ravenclaw closed his eyes, thinking that he was finally going to get that much needed touch to his cock, but it seemed like the other boy had another plan as he drifted down down _down,_ past his member, _down_ and he heard Obito remark, “You’re so pretty even here,” before he spread Kakashi’s behind and swiped his tongue over the opening, making the silver-haired boy jolt.

Kakashi mewled in surprise, feeling a tongue dabbing a circle around his rim, and his voice broke off into a choke when Obito slipped the wet and hot muscle in. Obito’s tongue shamelessly pushed into the tight canal as far as it could, bringing back a sinful memory of that night a few months ago, and Kakashi’s toes curled into the mattress. He’d almost forgotten how different and _intimate_ it felt with a tongue inside him, the muscle being shorter than a finger but so much more flexible, able to glide against his walls in the slightest of touch, and making him feel buzzed all over. He wimpered softly as Obito continued tonguing and sucking the tight opening, and he was feeling so _sensitive_ already, even without it being able to reach his spot. Kakashi’s body was growing hotter, his flesh blazing with fire and a thin sheen of sweat forming on his flushed skin.

Obito’s tongue circled around the rim of muscles one last time before pulling away, sensing Kakashi was at his limit as the pink hole had constricted on his tongue. He got up and a bout of unsatiable ferventness seemed to wash over him when he saw how dazed his boyfriend was. He leant up, unable to help himself and kissed Kakashi into the mattress.

They parted and the Slytherin grinned cheekily as he eyed Kakashi’s tall and leaking erection. He gently gripped the head, his firm grip sliding down Kakashi’s shaft slowly as his eyes continued to bore into Kakashi’s flushed face. Kakashi bit his lip and slid his eyelids shut, his body was still sensitive from the previous ministrations. He rested his head back on the pillow with a sigh as Obito stroked his member, finally giving it the attention it so desperately demanded.

“Fuck,” he let out another sharp whimper when he felt a pair of lips wrap around his cock. A long, hard suck threw all his sanity out of the window. All Kakashi could feel at that moment was pure white pleasure. He moaned loudly when Obito took more of his twitching organ inside his mouth, sliding it all the way in, before he began bobbing his head, pleasing the Ravenclaw with his mouth. Obito’s mouth felt so fucking good and Kakashi thought of how much he’d missed the feel of his hot lips wrapped around his shaft.

“Mmm…” Kakashi reached down and snaked his fingers through Obito’s hair, pushing the Slytherin further in, and gripped the headboard with his other hand when he felt himself entering the tight constraint at the back of Obito’s throat.

Obito hummed just then, igniting pleasurable impulses up the long length and Kakashi found himself subconsciously lifting his hips up from the bed and into Obito’s sinful mouth. The Slytherin gripped Kakashi’s hips firmly, holding them down as he slid Kakashi’s member out and sucked on his head harshly. He gave one last lick along the underside of Kakashi’s cock and got back up on his knees, hastily taking off his own boxers. His hot, heavy cock emerged, its size eliciting surprise and intense arousal inside Kakashi. He stared at the massive cock jutting out proudly in front of him, wondering how in the world he was to take that in. Obito reached back, picking up his jeans from the foot of the bed and taking a small tube from one of its pockets.

“You brought lube?” Kakashi asked breathlessly, staring as Obito squeezed a fine amount on his palm.

Obito merely grinned, throwing his jeans and the bottle of lube carelessly on the floor. He wrapped his lube-covered hand around his own cock, spreading the slick paste all over it, his eyebrows furrowing and a soft hiss escaping from between his teeth as he stroked his neglected member gently. Kakashi stared at the sight before him, his eyes unable to draw themselves away from Obito’s lustful expression and the hand that was wrapped around his own member.

Obito caught him staring and smirked, letting go of his own cock and turning his attention back to his boyfriend. Slowly, the Slytherin inserted a lubed finger inside Kakashi. The Ravenclaw bit down on his bottom lip and grasped Obito’s shoulders when he felt the cold, foreign intrusion, his walls clenching tightly around it. Obito eased it back and forth and when Kakashi had relaxed, added another finger in. He then started ramming his fingers in vigorously and Kakashi held on tighter to him, emitting a sharp moan. Obito searched for a small bump and insistently abused the area.

“Obito,” Kakashi rested his head on Obito’s shoulder, breathing harshly. The Slytherin fingered him rougher, shoving another finger. The sound of squelching pierced the quiet room. Obito leant down and the wet warmth of his mouth encased Kakashi’s throbbing cock once more.

Kakashi’s hands reached wildly around him to grip his sheets as he tried to buck his hips into both the delicious wetness and the fingers pressing against his sweet spot. Obito held down Kakashi’s hip with one hand and ran his tongue down the boy’s length. He roughly flicked at Kakashi’s tip with his tongue, sucking hard on the pinkish rod.

“Obito,” Kakashi whimpered out a breathy moan, tilting his head back as he tugged at the sheets to cope with the sheer pleasure, lips gnawed till they’re sore red and a bit of tears pooling at the side of his eyes.

In less than a minute, Kakashi finally convulsed once for all with a sharp cry, his eyes squinting shut and body arching off the bed as he burst his load into Obito’s mouth. He heaved weakly as Obito continued to suck him off, whimpering as an incoherent attempt to escape the latter’s relentless mouth.

Lapping up Kakashi’s sweet juices, Obito straightened up, but he didn’t pull his fingers out immediately. He slowed the pace while Kakashi caught his breath, coming down from his high. As his fingers now gently kneaded Kakashi’s soft insides, he kissed the Ravenclaw again, languidly now, and Kakashi could taste himself on Obito’s tongue. Kakashi throbbed around Obito’s fingers before the latter withdrew them and stroked the outside of the now swollen and tender opening for a moment, rubbing it in circles with his fingers.

Kakashi’s head was spinning like he had been drunk, feeling so fucked senseless he could barely see straight. Obito pulled back from the kiss, his fingers still caressing the puckered, warm throbbing entrance, and he looked into Kakashi’s half-lidded eyes. His gaze turned ravenous as he indulged in the sight before him.

“I wish you could see how you look right now,” the Slytherin panted in a rough voice as he shifted, pushing Kakashi’s legs up and rubbing his cock against the boy’s entrance. “Ready for round two?” he asked teasingly.

Kakashi gave him a weak nod, unable to churn out a verbal response as he shuddered from the dwindling waves of pleasure still present. The Ravenclaw bit down on his lip when Obito’s thick length entered him, a dull, searing pain splitting him apart. It was a lot bigger than Obito’s fingers.

Obito gave him another soft kiss as he pushed the rest of himself in and waited for the other to adjust. “You okay?” he murmured quietly, brushing aside Kakashi’s silver hair.

Kakashi nodded, his breaths coming out harsh. Obito started to move, slowly at first, his thrusts tentative and considerate. But after a while, he seemed unable to control himself and his ruts increased in speed.

“F-Fuck, Kakashi,” Obito grunted. “You’re so fucking tight.” His member slid in deeper with every thrust and finally, hit the area that made the Ravenclaw see stars under his eyelids.

“A-Ahh,” Kakashi moaned loudly, his fingers digging into the sheets. He was still sensitive from his first orgasm and it didn’t take long for his cock to come to life once more.

Obito started to aim for that spot and after a while, both wizards succumbed to loud, heavy moans of pleasure. Heavy breathing filled the air, punctuated occasionally by Obito’s grunts and Kakashi’s soft mewls. Obito slid his member out, his hands grabbing the backs of Kakashi’s knees and propping his legs up, exposing Kakashi’s delectable hole and started ramming into it heftily, the Ravenclaw throwing his head back in pleasure as Obito’s cock hammered against his sensitive bundle of nerves with every go. The Slytherin’s thrusts increased in vigour, the veins along his propped up arms standing out like green vines under the soft moonlight glow. Each plunge into Kakashi’s hole sending a surge of bliss through him. Kakashi gripped the sheets tightly, trying to ground himself as Obito’s every thrust sent him spiraling into a whirlpool of intense pleasure.

“Kakashi!” The door suddenly opened with a loud bang and the Ravenclaw’s eyes flew open. Obito stopped moving and the pair of them lay still for a moment; Kakashi’s shock reflected in Obito’s eyes.

 _Oh shit,_ he thought.

His heart pounded loudly in his chest as Ebisu’s footsteps pattered into the room. He tried to calm his breathing and his erratic heart. His erection stood painfully still on his stomach.

“Are you asleep?” Ebisu’s muffled voice asked.

There was a gut-wrenching silence, during which, Kakashi mentally cursed his dormmate with every single swearword he knew. He stifled back a groan, his desperation for his release high. He hoped Ebisu would just think that he was asleep and quietly leave them alone.

“I swear I heard your voice just now,” Ebisu muttered. A clutter of noises sounded from his bed.

Shit, thought Kakashi. Obito glanced down at him, widening his eyes and giving him a pointed look.

“N-No,” Kakashi stuttered.

“Oh, you’re not sleeping?” came Ebisu’s voice. “Listen, I left my Divination textbook somewhere and now I can’t find it. I swear I left it on my bedside table. Did you see it?”

“No, I didn’t,” Kakashi replied in a strained voice. He was fully aware that Obito’s cock was still buried inside him. The ache on his hard member was overwhelming. He nibbled on his lip, tearing at the chapped flesh. Frustration started to broil inside him. Obito looked down at him, took in his expression, and started moving. Kakashi’s eyes widened when he felt the Slytherin thrusting slowly inside him. The tension in his loins built up again and he gnawed at his lip to prevent himself from making a sound.

“-already halfway up the hill when I realised I didn’t have it with me. I told Professor Yamanaka and he got really angry at me, demanding that I get back and retrieve it. I told him I could just share with Tokuma, but he was being a stubborn prick and made me come all the way back just to get that stupid book. And now I can’t find it. I swear he hates my guts. I mean, we aren’t even going to use the book much,” Ebisu rambled on, expressing his annoyance at his Divination professor.

Kakashi could barely hear him, his eyes were screwed shut with the effort it took for him not to release a sound as Obito continued to thrust into him with increasing speed. The Slytherin’s breaths came out short and raspy. Kakashi’s fingers were clawing at the sheets in strained effort, his nails digging dents into his eiderdown.

“Kakashi?”

“Y-Yeah?” Kakashi gasped when Obito’s head skimmed his sweet spot.

“Can you help me look for it?” Ebisu asked.

Obito pounded against Kakashi’s prostate, causing him to gasp softly. Kakashi swallowed back a moan. “L-Look for what?” he managed shakily.

“Um, my Divination book?” Ebisu responded.

There was silence after that; Kakashi could not trust himself to speak. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead to his temples, and Obito’s arms, which were beside his head, were shining with a sheen of perspiration. His thrusts became more violent and the bed rocked slightly, the curtains wavering in the air. Kakashi gripped Obito’s arm, urging him to stop, but also yearning for him to continue, to take him with such force that he wouldn’t be able to walk for days; Kakashi wanted him to fuck him senseless right there and then. He let out short exhales, grunts escaping his lips.

“Hey Kakashi, are you okay?” Ebisu asked slowly.

Kakashi’s breaths were coming out in loud pants and his bottom lip was torn from the force of his bite. It bled slightly.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he forced out.

Obito was plunging into him harder than ever, inducing a burning pool in his stomach and Kakashi knew he wouldn’t be able to hold back for long.

“Are you sure? You sound a bit off.”

Kakashi could hear his dormmate slowly reaching the end of his poster-bed and voiced out desperately, “No! I’m okay! I’m just- ahhh…”

Obito’s hand had wrapped itself around the Ravenclaw’s neglected member and was now stroking it in hard squeezes.

There was a heavy silence.

“Dude,” Ebisu said, his shock apparent in his voice. “Are you with Obito?”

“I- ahhh… fuck,” Kakashi mewled as Obito thumbed the tip of Kakashi’s cock roughly, his thrusts never ceasing.

“Wow… Okay, um, I found my book. I’m just going to…” Ebisu’s flustered voice faltered.

Kakashi heard the quick scurrying of feet and eventually, the door closed. He glared up at Obito. “What the fuck, Obito?”

The Slytherin smirked, before throwing one particularly hard thrust up into Kakashi. The latter cried out in pleasure.

“You looked so cute being all flustered when he came in. I couldn’t help it,” Obito whispered close to Kakashi’s ear, his hot breath sending shivers down Kakashi’s spine.

“Mmph,” Kakashi hummed in response to Obito’s hard grip stroking his cock in time with his thrusts.

He submitted himself to a moaning mess, twitching at every shot of pleasure he received from Obito’s hard thrusts. The sensitive bundle of nerves inside his body was beat repeatedly, until he eventually gave an erotic cry, Obito's name bouncing off the walls of the dormitory. He shuddered as a blinding drag of delectation coursed through him and he released his load all over his stomach for the second time that night, Obito's fingers squeezing out every last drop of pleasure. His loud, tantalising moans continued to filled the air and Obito came not too long after, his own deep moans mixing with Kakashi’s.

They panted heavily, Obito bringing his forehead to Kakashi’s and staring fondly into his eyes. Their breaths mingled together; the stench of sweat and sex damp in the air around them. Kakashi’s chest heaved and he closed his eyes as Obito brought their lips together. The kiss was sweet, perfect, and he opened his eyes to gaze lovingly at his boyfriend. The Slytherin slid out and sank down onto the mattress beside Kakashi, one arm over his forehead and the other sliding under Kakashi’s neck. The Ravenclaw turned and nuzzled his head under Obito’s chin. They locked lips again, listening to the quiet, and feeling each other's affections in the air.

Obito tilted Kakashi's chin up and lifted his hand to stroke his hair. “I love you,” he breathed, smiling softly into his eyes.

Kakashi closed his eyes, the gentle gesture and the secure feeling of Obito's hold making him feel as though there was no place else in the world he belonged more than in Obito's arms. He opened his eyes and met Obito’s warm gaze. “I love you too,” he whispered with a smile. He wound his arm around Obito and rested against his chest.

He felt the rise and fall of the Slytherin's chest, Obito's slow breathing somehow instilling a resounding sense of security in him. Obito's compelling scent overwhelmed him and he found himself enjoying every feel, every smell and every touch of the other. He felt the fatigue that came with his orgasm wash across his body, dousing his muscles in heaviness and soon, his eyelids closed, Obito’s slow, deep breaths becoming his lullaby.

***

Sunlight drifted in like an orange mist, the curtains around Kakashi’s bed giving a very warm glow to his surroundings. He turned to his side, his arms catching nothing but empty sheets and a lack of warmth that suggested they might have been that way for a while. Kakashi's eyes fluttered open, taking in Obito’s absence beside him. He sat up slowly, confused. Almost immediately, a piece of parchment sticking out from beneath a pillow caught his attention. It was neatly folded and strategically placed so that he wouldn’t miss it. Kakashi took the parchment, unfolding it and reading the hastily-written scribble.

_I had to leave before your dormmates came back last night. You were already asleep and I didn’t want to wake you up. You looked so adorable I didn’t want to leave your side at all. I hope you slept well._

A smile stretching from one ear to the other, Kakashi got up from his bed and threw his curtains apart. He felt unusually cheerful despite it being a dreary Wednesday morning. Kakashi washed up and got dressed, a soft hum escaping his lips as he did so. The past night’s events were strikingly prominent at the forefront of his mind. He felt a blush creep up his cheeks and a slow smile spread across his lips as he recalled the previous night. He slipped into his shoes and strolled down to the Great Hall, a spring erupting in his steps every once in a while.

“You seem cheerful,” Tenzo noted. He observed the fourth-year as he sat down at the Ravenclaw table, face positively glowing with happiness.

“Do I?” Kakashi returned with a smile.

Still looking befuddled at Kakashi’s unusually happy demeanour, Tenzo reminded him, “Rin’s supposed to be discharged today.”

“So I’ve heard,” Kakashi chimed as he poured milk into his cereal.

“She’s been whining to me about the hospital food,” complained Tenzo.

Kakashi chuckled, “I don’t blame her. Madam Mei’s cooking is tasteless.”

“She looked so happy when I visited him last night, though. Did something exciting happen?”

Kakashi hesitated. He couldn’t exactly tell the third-year that the last time he visited Rin at the hospital wing, he’d bumped into her secret boyfriend and they’d discussed the feasibility of bringing their relationship to public afterwards. He wasn’t even sure if he was allowed to talk about it just yet. Fortunately for him, Tenzo seemed to be distracted by something at the entrance, for he suddenly stretched out a long arm and pointed in that direction.

“Oh look, there she is.”

Kakashi twisted his body around and was met with the sight of Rin strutting into the Great Hall with her hands in his robe pockets. She was still looking a little pale, but the smile on her face was assurance enough that she was back in good health.

“You’re back!” Kakashi rejoiced as Rin took a seat across him.

The latter chuckled, “No need to show your overt enthusiasm. I know you’ve both missed me terribly.”

Kakashi snorted, returning to his meal. “I didn’t even notice you were gone.”

“Tsk,” Rin tutted. He turned to Tenzo and reached her hand up to ruffle his hair; her arm was raised to a level that was a few inches higher than the top of his head and Kakashi watched them in amusement.

“Did you miss me, Tenzo?” Rin cooed.

“Loads,” the other third-year pouted.

“Well at least someone appreciates me,” Rin said with a pointed glance in Kakashi’s direction.

Kakashi rolled his eyes and returned to his cereal. Rin and Tenzo chatted amiably for a while, the boy enthusiastically telling the former about the new Herbology teacher.

“Why are you smiling to yourself?”

Kakashi lifted his head to find the two third-years had turned their attention to him. He flushed and coughed awkwardly. “I wasn’t,” he rebutted.

“He’s been doing that since he came,” Tenzo supplied unhelpfully.

Kakashi shot him a betrayed look, though it probably didn’t look convincing as he felt his lips twitch, threatening to break into a smile as memories of last night came flooding back.

Rin sniggered. “I take it everything is going well with Obito?”

Kakashi couldn’t help but smile as he nodded, suddenly feeling shy.

“Judging from the way he’s acting, I would say it’s more than ‘going well’.” Tenzo teased.

Rin turned to the fellow third-year. “Aww, you don’t sound jealous. You’ve finally moved on, haven’t you?” She ruffled the boy’s brown hair.

“Shut up.” Tenzo swatted her hand, but there was no real malice in his tone.

Rin grinned. “Is this the work is a certain Gryffindor Beater?” she continued to tease him. Tenzo chose to ignore her, but there was a faint blush on his cheeks.

Kakashi shook his head with a chuckle. Rin could be insufferable sometimes. He returned to his now semi-soggy cereal, inwardly hoping things would go well between Tenzo and Iruka.

“Oh look,” Rin casually piped up after a while, smirking at Kakashi. “The boyfriend’s here.”

“Huh?” Kakashi said blankly, his spoon hovering in mid-air.

Out of the blue, a pair of arms creeped around his shoulders and wrapped him in a tight hug. Kakashi gulped. His spoon wobbled and a few drops of milk splashed onto the wooden table. Rin gave a soft snicker.

“Hey,” Obito whispered into Kakashi’s ear.

“Don’t do that,” the Ravenclaw muttered as he tried to wriggle away from the Slytherin’s grip.

Obito laughed, his arms loosening their hold on Kakashi, but he still kept his steady hands on his shoulders. He gave them a light squeeze.

“Want to go for a walk with me?” he asked brightly.

“I haven’t finished my cereal,” Kakashi mumbled, blatantly ignoring the smirks Rin and Tenzo were giving each other at Obito’s request.

“I wrapped some toast for you.” Obito reached down and entwined his fingers with Kakashi’s. “Come on.” He pulled the Ravenclaw up.

Kakashi blinked in surprise, but he did not resist. He got up, feeling a blush bloom in his cheeks as several people along the Ravenclaw table shot them curious glances. He caught a glimpse of Anko and her friends staring at him and Obito with scowls on their faces from the Slytherin table. However, as though proving what Obito had told him in the hospital wing two days ago, there were also a few Slytherins who gave them the thumbs up. He turned to Obito and the latter gave him a warm smile. He tugged the Ravenclaw along, his grip firm around Kakashi’s hand. They took a couple of steps, before Obito bumped into a lean figure. The Slytherin blinked in surprise.

“Uchiha,” Genma acknowledged.

Obito’s face smoothened. “Shiranui,” he returned smoothly.

The pair of them stared at each other awkwardly for a second, before Genma side-stepped Obito and strolled over to where Rin was sitting with Tenzo. Kakashi saw his friend break into a smile and reach out a hand to welcome her boyfriend.

“Come on,” Obito urged gently, his hand pulling Kakashi’s.

He turned and followed the Slytherin out of the Great Hall, though not before he heard a faint voice going, “How are you?” at his friend. As they minced out of the Entrance Hall, he silently prayed that things would only get better for the couple now that they had Genma’s parents’ blessing.

They strolled along the banks of the Great Lake together. Kakashi did not know if it was due to their heated night last night, but he was feeling a little shy around Obito. They stepped over the litter on the ground, the crunching noises the only sounds dotting the silence in the air for a while. Obito raised a low branch and held it up for Kakashi. The latter murmured a soft ‘thanks’ as he ducked below it.

“Did you have a good sleep?” Obito questioned once they’d reached a fallen log. The pair seated themselves on the moist wood.

Kakashi took the toast from Obito with another ‘thanks’ and nibbled on the brown crust for a while, before he answered, “Yes.”

“Sorry for leaving,” Obito apologised, scratching the back of his neck. “You know I wanted to stay.”

“Don’t worry about it. I understand,” Kakashi assured. He bit his lip, before asking hesitantly, “Do you want to come over tonight?”

Obito blinked. A tinge of red quickly stained the tips of his ears.

Sensing the misunderstanding, Kakashi clarified, “N-not to do that… I just want to spend as much time as I can with you.”

Obito took his lower lip between his teeth, chewing on it contemplatively. “I can’t,” he sighed. His shoulders slumped down. “It’s the Slytherins’ turn to have the Divination excursion tonight.”

“Ah, that’s okay.” Kakashi gave a laugh. As an afterthought, he added, “It might be awkward with my dormmates anyway.”

“Yeah,” Obito murmured. He smiled suddenly, his face lighting up adorably. “It makes me so happy to hear that you want to spend as much time as possible with me.” He gave a smirk and teased the Ravenclaw. “Bet you can’t get enough of my handsome face.”

Kakashi laughed, resting his head on Obito’s shoulder. He snuck his hand under Obito’s palm and grabbed the spaces between his fingers.

“I can’t get enough of you,” he breathed.

They sat still for a while, their free hands occasionally bringing toast up to their mouths. Kakashi tilted his head up to see that Obito was gazing down at him, his onyx eyes swimming with love. A light breeze caught Kakashi’s bangs and swept them over his eyes, some of the silver strands catching between his lashes. Obito lifted a hand and brushed them gently out of the way. Kakashi felt a shimmer of happiness wrap around his heart once more. He had never felt like this before—this indescribable feeling of belonging so wholly with someone. But being with Obito… it felt right to him.

“Hey, Obito,” Kakashi said after a moment, deciding to let out something that had been in the back of his mind ever since they’d started dating.

Obito hummed, signaling him to continue.

“Will your parents be okay with you dating a half-blood?”

Obito didn’t answer immediately. Kakashi lifted his head to stare at his boyfriend, his eyebrows raised lightly.

Obito bit his lip and shrugged. “My grandfather would’ve been so against this, but don’t worry, he’s dead,” he said with a grin.

Kakashi frowned at him. “Obito.”

Obito gave Kakashi’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Some of my relatives will probably have some nasty stuff to say when they find out since, you know, most of them are Slytherins. It’s in our nature to be little shits.” He grinned. “My parents used to be against these things too, but they’ve kind of mellowed after what my grandfather did to me for standing up to him,” he continued as he brought the pale hand to his scarred face.

Kakashi’s eyes widened. “Your grandfather did this to you?”

Obito nodded. “But it’s okay. The old man is dead now and I’m over it,” he assured Kakashi, clearly not seeing it necessary to elaborate further. “And I think this is actually a good thing. You wouldn’t want the entire school to have a crush on me, would you? Because I know for a fact that at least half of them still find me attractive even with these scars, including you.” He teased.

Kakashi slapped Obito’s arm with feigned annoyance, but the soft expression remained on his face. “I’m sorry. It must’ve hurt.” His hand was back on Obito’s face and he thumbed the scars gently.

“It’s okay.” Obito put his hand on top of Kakashi’s and kissed the inside of the Ravenclaw’s wrist, smiling persistently. “Besides, my parents still feel bad about this – for letting this happen to me. So if they have a problem with us being together, I’ll use this as leverage.” Another radiant grin bloomed over his lips.

Kakashi scoffed at his boyfriend. “Let’s hope you don’t have to guilt-trip your parents into giving us their blessing, then. I’m not really a big fan of drama.”

“Me neither.” Obito leant in and pecked Kakashi’s lips, indulging in the crimson faintly colouring the Ravenclaw’s pale face. “My mother can be a little bit annoying sometimes, but she’s not the type to put family reputation or anything like that above her son’s happiness, so don’t worry about it, okay?”

Kakashi decided to trust Obito and nodded.

It was a peaceful morning, the pair of them only concerned about being in each other’s presence. They chewed on their toast, Kakashi occasionally breaking off small pieces of his to feed Obito.

“Ahh…” Obito said, holding a large chunk of toast out for Kakashi, after being on the receiving end of almost half his toast.

Kakashi opened his mouth and leant forwards, intent on capturing the piece of toast between his teeth. Just before it touched Kakashi’s lips, Obito withdrew his hand and popped the toast into his mouth.

“Hey!”

The Slytherin grinned down at the scowling Ravenclaw. Kakashi folded his arms and glared at his boyfriend, his eyebrows knotted together in mock anger. Though upon seeing the goofy, childish grin on Obito’s face, his frown melted into a soft smile. He giggled, causing Obito to emit a deep chuckle. The pair of them eventually resigned to fits of chortles, each laughing even harder whenever they made eye contact.

“You know, Rin once suspected that you’d somehow spiked my drink with Amortentia.”

“Really?” Obito raised his eyebrows in amusement. “But now that you mention it, I probably should’ve.” He added. “It would’ve saved me a lot of sleepless nights. You were really confusing.”

“Hey, you were frustating too,” Kakashi said defensively. “And besides, you know no amount of love potions would’ve resulted in this.” He gestured at them with a small smile. “You no longer being a jerk and showing me this less annoying side of you worked better than any love potions could have ever done.”

“Less annoying?” Obito snorted. “I think you spelled ‘charming’ wrong.” But then his eyes softened, looking genuinely apologetic. “I’m really sorry for being an asshole. I must’ve hurt you a lot. It was very stupid of me.”

“Yeah, you were stupid.” Kakashi agreed cheekily. “But it’s okay. What happens in the past stays in the past, right? You’ve changed and I honestly couldn’t ask for a better boyfriend.” He added with a smile and leant over to brush their lips in a chaste kiss.

Obito cupped Kakashi’s cheek and caught him with a deeper kiss. It was breathtaking how Obito kissed. He layered his lips with the need to breathe Kakashi in and the contrary want to treat him with only tenderness.

At that moment, a series of low chimes sounded in the distance, sending a flock of birds to rise from the clock tower; signalling for the start of class. They both leant back and emitted loud sighs.

“It’s double Defence now,” Kakashi groaned.

“We have it together,” Obito mentioned with a smile. “It won’t be so bad.”

Kakashi smiled and gave a nod of agreement. “You’re right. Let’s get going. We don’t want to be late and get into more trouble with Professor Uchiha.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry if the relationship between Obito and Kakashi was too slow-paced, but I wanted to make it as natural as possible. I hope the last chapter makes up for it! There might be a part two in the future, but I’ll wrap this up for now. Thank you once more guys, for reading this and taking the time to leave kudos and such nice comments. It makes me really happy to know that so many people enjoyed this story <3


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